


When You Wish Upon a Star

by Stitches04



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe-Disney, Angst, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Cuban Lance (Voltron), Disney, Eventual Relationships, F/M, Fluff, Gay Keith (Voltron), Korean Keith (Voltron), M/M, Possible coming out, The magic of Disney, Vacation, some biphobia, some homophobia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-30
Updated: 2018-08-02
Packaged: 2018-12-08 21:22:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 27,661
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11654997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stitches04/pseuds/Stitches04
Summary: "I wish I could be happy."Disney is a place where wishes come true and miracles happen. It truly is the most magical place on Earth. But what happens when two people from two completely different backgrounds meet at Disney? Will they find a common ground? Will they live happily ever after, or will their love fall flat?





	1. Important Information

**Important Note:**

This fanfiction is rated M (Mature) because of the content regarding sexuality and the whole experience of coming out and embracing who you are. I, myself, have dealt with this experience so it's personal to me and this story. There is going to be NO smut or graphic sex, but there will be cursing. The ages of the characters will be, for the majority of them, bumped up to their mid-20s, so there will be no controversy over age.

This is my first fanfiction, so over the course of the story, I would greatly appreciate any comments or feedback that could help me in the long run.

I want to thank my best friend for giving me the idea for this story line. Without her, I wouldn't have this story in the first place. I also want to thank horrifyinglylance and b.lue_p.aladin on Instagram and other close friends for helping me proofread and making each chapter the best that it can be.


	2. Yaking with the Yeti

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet the players!

“I seriously can’t believe you threw up on there!” A dark skinned boy laughed, as people scurried by the photo area just outside the ride. Him and two other people were looking up at a photo on the wall from the coaster they were just on. In the first row, the dark skinned boy watched in horror as a male in a yellow shirt and olive vest leaned over the side of the car and released his stomach’s contents into the air. A girl in green with glasses laughed in the row behind them.

“I told you before we got on how nauseous I get,” the yellow shirt guy replied, holding his arms up in defense of his action. “But you insisted it wasn’t that bad.” 

The girl rolled her eyes while saying, “He’s got a point, Lance.” as she pushed the bridge of her glasses up her nose. 

“Guess it has been a while since I was on this ride,” Lance sighed as he pressed his blue Magicband onto a Mickey shaped panel. It lit up green, confirming that the photo was saved.

The three exited the Himalayan themed gift shop into the blazing heat of August in Florida. Hundreds of people passed by them on their way to their own plans. Towering above them was the white-peaked monstrosity known as Expedition Everest, a coaster where riders journey to Mount Everest and encounter the Yeti. 

As they proceeded near the ledge of the observatory deck, faint screams echoed from inside the mountain. A few seconds later, the train of the coaster came roaring out of the mountain and down the tracks, the screams of riders fading as they disappear. Lance never thought he would be back in Disney World. Disney vacations are expensive, especially the ones his family took when he was younger. Lucky for him and his friends, the only thing they had to pay for was souvenirs.

Hunk, Lance’s best cultural friend and natural puker, heard about a contest on the local radio station. Caller 12 would win an all-expenses paid trip to Disney World for a group of three for a week. Hunk immediately summoned Lance and their tech expert, Pidge, over to his house. When the contest started, the three of them immediately called in. Lance and Pidge immediately found out who won when Hunk started jumping up and down, yelling he was caller 12.

Needless to say, Hunk rewarded his friends’ efforts by taking them along for the trip. And here they were, reminiscing over a puking photo of Hunk in Animal Kingdom. 

“So, where to guys?” Lance asked, stretching his arm above his head. “We should go to Dinoland U.S.A.,” Pidge replied, pulling the map out from her bag. “I heard the Dinosaur is where we can save the last dinosaur from extinction using time travel!”

“I don’t know guys,” Hunk said, stepping between them. “I saw that Baloo and King Louie from ‘The Jungle Book’ are going to be at the character pavilion. I really want to go see them.” Pidge pulled out her phone and opened the Disney Experience app she downloaded on the way to the park. 

“The wait time is 45 minutes. We should go before the line gets any longer.”

“The characters aren’t that far. It won’t take that long, I promise.”

“Your pavilion is on the other side of the park, Hunk. We’ll be taking an entire detour, and the line will be at least an hour.”

Lance sighed as his two friends kept arguing over what they were going to do. They would have done Fastpasses for rides, but he forgot that they could be done online now. Back when he was little, to get a Fastpass, you had to insert your pass into a machine and a slip of paper popped out with the time of your Fastpass. So by the time they landed in Orlando, it was too late and all the good rides were gone. Little things, like It’s Tough to Be a Bug were left, which wouldn’t be enough to please Pidge. 

Now Lance had to suffer through debates between his best friends as to their daily plans. Hunk, being as sensitive as he is to motion, prefers to steer clear of any extreme rides. Instead, he prefers small adventures and character meet and greets, which matches up with his inner child. Pidge, on the other hand, loves exploring and getting dangerous, so coasters and the like are her style.

Then there’s Lance. He loves all the rides equally, as a true Disney fan should. He’s okay with meeting characters and going on roller coasters. His friends’ preferences however, made it difficult to come to a compromise. This was their third argument of the day! Besides this was only their first day in the parks. He loved Pidge and Hunk, but he wasn’t sure if he could handle their feuding for the rest of the trip. They came to have fun, not ruin their friendship.

Lance stepped in between the two, holding up his hands to separate them. “Okay, guys.” He turned to Hunk. “Hunk, why don’t you go over to the pavilion and meet your characters?” He reached behind him and took Pidge’s map. “Use this to help you get there. Pidge and I will go over to Dinoland U.S.A.”

“Don’t you need the map?” Hunk asked, holding it out to Lance. “I know this place like the back of my hand,” Lance replied, pushing the map back into his hands. “You use it. Message us when you’re done, and we’ll find a meeting place.” Hunk opened his mouth, like he was about to disagree, but closed it as he walked off, suddenly swallowed by the growing crowd. 

“You sure that’s a good idea?” Pidge piped up, causing Lance to turn around. He looked down at his friend, reminded of her height. “Hunk will be fine. He’s good with directions.” Pidge crossed her arms in front of her chest. 

“Should I remind you of the time we had to drive to the frozen yogurt place?”

“It wasn’t that bad.”

“We ended up an hour away. We almost got ran over asking for directions!”

Lance winced at the memory. He still had the brush burn scar from when he dove to the pavement. “Fair point. But that was years ago. Hunk’s changed.”

Pidge started to walk off, Lance jogging to her side. “So what do you think of the park so far?”

“I’m surprised they have the geography correct,” Pidge replied. “They even got local mythology and traditions correct.” She pointed out the multi-colored banners waving in the wind above them, stamped with the languages of Asia. “Disney does put a lot of effort into their works,” Lance agreed. After Frozen was released, Disney really stepped up their game on authenticity.

“Makes me feel like I’m in Asia. Well, except for the heat.” Lance chuckled. “That’s one of the bad things about Florida. The weather could be better.”

Shadows floated over the two friends as they passed under a stone bridge. Standing above the bridge, immersed in the daylight, was the skeleton of a Brachiosaurus, its neck stretching up to the heavens. Lance stretched his neck to get a full look at the dinosaur. What would it be like if they were still alive?

“Pidge? Can you do me a favor?” 

“Yeah, sure.”

“Could you argue less with Hunk? We’re here to have fun.”

Pidge looked up at him, her eyes scanning his face. “I don’t mean to, you know. I just want us to get the most out of this trip. Besides sometimes that means we go off and do what we like most.” She nodded, looking back down at the path ahead of them. They turned into a secluded corner of the park, where vegetation ran wild. In the center of the complex, a green dinosaur looked down on guests with a humble smile. Above it was a sunset colored explosion, meteors bursting from all edges. A carnotaurus looked down on all guests, ready to feast on new meat. 

“Well look at that,” Pidge noted, looking at the entrance to the ride. “The wait time is still the same.”

\---------------

A large shadow casting itself across the room, void of all life. A lazy hand rubbed across the wall until it hit the light switch, making artificial light flood the room. Their luggage laid on a splatter of mint green walls, lined at the ceiling with the characters of “Finding Nemo” swimming among the bubbles and seaweed. Pale olive green furniture filled the left-hand side of the room, leading up to a brightly lit sink area, decked with the same green color and a white countertop. Dual lamps hovered over the two queen beds, decked with a tropical-colored bedspread, each individual square filled up with characters of “Finding Nemo” and other sea sights. On the corner of the bed closest to the door lay a small Mickey head made out of courtesy towels.

In the doorway stood Hunk, his eyelids half shut and his body slumped over. He immediately walked to the nearest bed and fell face first into it. Pidge followed inside. “I don’t think my feet have ever hurt this much in my life,” she groaned, walking to the bathroom. “Disney will do that to ya,” Lance said, stretching his arms before shutting the door behind him. 

Hunk’s light snores were muffled by the sheets. Lance grabbed his dark blue suitcase and heaved it up onto the other bed. He unzipped it and pulled out the pajamas that laid on top of his other clothes. He unfolded them and laid them down flat, revealing the lion pattern on his pants. 

A flush sounded behind him as Pidge appeared out of the bathroom, washing her hands. She stepped out into the living space and caught sight of what Lance was doing. “Bed sounds pretty good right about now.”

Despite his feet aching to be rested, Lance’s mind wasn’t tired in the slightest. Probably from the anxiousness of being in Disney after so many long years apart. “Actually, Pidge, I’m gonna go for a walk.” Pidge rubbed her eyes, as if to prove her own exhaustion. “

"It’s 10:30, Lance. Aren’t you tired?” 

“I am,” he replied, closing his suitcase. 

“I just want to look around the resort a bit.”

“Fine. Just make sure you get some sleep.”

Lance headed for the door and made sure it was locked behind him before heading out for the main walkway. Palm trees swayed above him, pushed gently by the night breeze. The path winded out before opening up to a view of the lake that the Caribbean Beach was centered around. The moon floated above, reflecting its pure light onto the mirror lake below. After the pathway was a small island of sand, littered with chairs and hammocks.

He stopped at the edge of the sand and leaned down to pull off his sneakers and socks. He sniffed his socks, his nose immediately scrunching up in disgust. 

They would be the first pair to be washed when he got home. Without hesitation, he stepped out onto the sand, filling the gaps between his toes, leaving his footwear on the sidewalk.

He took his time until he reached the water’s edge. The sound of gentle waves lapping against the shoreline filled the night silence. It was nights like these that Lance loved, being around the water and just relaxing. Disney is supposed to be a place where he could unwind. But after today, he wasn’t sure if he could. 

A small glimmer caught his attention. Lance looked around for the source, thinking it was a light on someone’s smartphone. To his surprise, no one was around, except for a stray visitor on the far right hand side of the lake. The light appeared again, and Lance looked to the only place left: up.

The shining light came from a single star, making the other stars inferior in size and light. It hung alone, like Lance was at that very moment in time. It was like the star shone for him, calling out to him. But for what?

Lance thought back to the times as a kid where he looked out his small bedroom window, leaning over the edge to get a good look at the small slice of sky each night. He used to make wishes for dumb stuff, like a stuffed giraffe named Jeff or a chance to ride the new roller coaster at the local theme park. Of course those wishes came true. But when he needed it most, like when his mother got sick, they never came true. Maybe he used up all the wishes he was granted. 

Some part of him, despite all the failed wishes, wanted to make one last plea to the cosmos. He closed his eyes, envisioning his wish as it slipped onto his lips. 

“I wish I could be happy,” he whispered, his words taken away by a sudden gust of wind.

When he opened his eyes, the star had burned away, unable to be identified among the hundreds of dull stars that night. Did it work? He thought to himself. He glanced around, half-expecting for his friends to come bursting out of the bushes, bickering beside them. Instead, silence and no friends occurred. 

Lance sighed. Who wishes on stars anymore, anyway? No one, except for little kids with big hopes and optimists. Lance was neither of those. 

With one last look out at the water, he went back to the path and scooped up his shoes. He walked back to his room with no hesitation and fell asleep as soon as his head met the pillow. All he could dream about was that single star. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter! I'll try to get each chapter out as soon as I can, since I'm still out of school


	3. Space Rangers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet the players, part 2!

“T-minus three minutes and counting.” a voice echoed over a loudspeaker.

“Okay now, listen up. Here are your assignments,” a different male voice, called the Director, said.

A single spotlight shined down on a man with a black mullet. Shadows were cast down on his stormy grey eyes, that watched the screen with precision. The light was sucked in by his black fitted T-shirt, adding to the heat of the situation. 

“Navigator,” the voice continued. “You will fire the thrusters for lunar orbit insertion and for descent to the surface of Mars.”

Another light shone down on a dark-skinned girl with platinum hair up in a high ponytail. Her lips were painted with a light pink, and her cerulean eyes gleamed in the lighting. “Engineer, when it’s bedtime, you’ll activate hypersleep. You’ll also extend the wings for landing.” 

A third spotlight blinked on, this time lighting up a tall, built figure. A small white forelock of hair stood out against the inky blackness of his cropped hair, cut into an undercut.

His face was sharp and rigid in its features, and his dark grey eyes filled with pride.

“Pilot, on my signal, I’ll need you to trigger the second stage rockets and deploy the shields.”

“I’ll do commander since there’s three of us,” the black haired man said as a fourth spotlight shone down on an empty space. “Commander, you’ll be responsible for first stage separation and activating manual control for landing.”

The Director appeared on the screen in front of them. “Don’t worry. When it’s time to push the buttons, they’ll light up, and I’ll give you the go.” The guy with the mullet rolled his eyes. “At least make it a challenge.”

“One last thing. In the event of an emergency landing, there are control sticks at every crew position.”  Her voice had a British accent, her tone light and airy. “That good enough for you, Keith?” The girl asked, a small smirk on her face. He shrugged. “It’ll do.”

The other man leaned forward, looking at Keith. “You know they have to make this easy for guests.” Keith looked at his friend around his girlfriend, Allura. “I know, Shiro. But this is supposed to be thrilling. What if this was a real life situation? Buttons wouldn’t be lighting up for us at the right time.”

Allura chuckled. “Then we’re lucky we’re not in a real life situation, or else we’d all be doomed.”

The doors opened between Keith and another group, revealing a crowded chamber as guests swarmed an exit. Keith led his friends inside, forming a circle around the central pillar of the room were containing chambers, big enough for four people. Keith hopped inside, heading to the end of his row. Inside the chamber were four seats, each with straps that went parallel with the rider’s body. In front of each seat was a screen, a series of buttons, and a control stick.

“I feel like I’m actually in a spaceship,” Allura said as she stepped into the chamber. 

“It may not be like a real life situation, but it sure does feel like it,” Shiro commented as he strapped into the ride.

Keith nodded, lowering the strap onto his chest. He toyed with the set in front of him, flicking switches and pressing buttons, labeled for air pressure and stabilization. The layout of the ride definitely was high caliber. Would the ride itself meet these standards?

Ride officials came in on both sides to check their restraints. Both gave thumbs up to each other before shutting the bay doors. A few moments later, the screen and controls slid down closer to them, so they were in arms reach. Muffled voices over a communication system could be heard. 

“Oh, here we go,” Shiro said, trying out the joystick in front of him. 

The Director’s voice overpowered the other voices. “Good luck, team. All of us here at Mission Control are proud to be a part of this historic liftoff of the first mission to Mars.”

Suddenly, the chamber tilted up. The screen revealed an open sky, draped with clouds. With a thud, their rocket met the massive launching tower. The countdown to liftoff echoed in the riders’ ears.

“Here we go,” Shiro yelled over the roar of the thrusters. Soon after, the rocket launched into virtual space. The chamber started to move, a force accelerating them in one direction. A pressure started to press in on Keith’s face, making the skin around his mouth and cheeks spread out. He glanced at Allura and Shiro out of pure curiosity, only to be hit by a wave of nausea. He turned his eyes back to the screen, in hopes to fight it. Sadly, nausea can’t be cured that quickly.

Their momentum slowed down as a blanket of stars and darkness draped over them. “Whoa,” Keith muttered, the pressure on his chest loosening. 

“Pilot, engage second stage rockets now.” Shiro replied by pressing the corresponding button to the director’s command. They suddenly burst forward. Below them a vision of Earth appeared, as their velocity increased. A small space station passed by them as the Moon popped out from behind the station. 

“Navigator, fire rocket for lunar orbit insertion now.” Keith, his hand trembling slightly from the chamber, reached for the button. What would happen if he didn’t press it? Would the simulator still continue? Not willing to risk it, he pressed the button as their ship spun around the Moon. As they shot out of its orbit, Earth was there in its grand scale, almost as if congratulating the astronauts. 

“Is that it?” Allura asked. As if on cue, the director spoke up again. “Engineer, activate hypersleep now.”

She scoffed. “Guess not,” she said as she pressed the hypersleep button. A hiss filled the chamber as small ice crystals covered their screen.

“Sweet dreams, everyone,” Shiro called out as the chamber went dark.

A few moments later, a blaring alarm snapped the system back into working operation. The screen flashed on to reveal Mars in the near distance, but splattered with meteors. “Oh god,” Keith exclaimed, gripping onto the control stick in front of him. He desperately wanted to use it to fly through the meteors, but it would not move. 

“Pilot, deploy shields now.”

“Not dying today!” Shiro yelled as he pressed the shields button. The rocket maneuvered around each small gap in the surrounding meteors, barely scraping by as they hurdled towards the riders. Soon, the meteors were far behind them and Mars got that much closer.

“Navigator, fire rockets for descent now!” Keith pressed his button, his other hand still gripping the control stick. The ship surged towards the red planet, mountain ranges and gulches the size of the Grand Canyon coming into view. “Engineer, extend wings for gliding now!” Allura did as told. Just as soon as she pressed it, an alarm blared. 

“What did I do wrong?” Allura asked no one in particular.  “We lost autopilot. Commander, activate manual control!”

“Hold on, team,” Shiro commanded. The command sticks came to life before them. Keith smirked, taking the shaking control stick in both his hands.. Now this was the kind of action that he was looking forward to. 

“Pull back!” The director ordered, the riders doing so with all their might. They verged to the left, then a quick right, almost slamming into the side of the gulch. Keith kept his eyes narrowed, watching the screen before them with precision. The way his hand worked the control stick was almost as if he was a professional.

As they turned, an earthy red runway came into view, with snow piled on each side. The runway was cut off by the edge of a cliff into a massive pit, with a blockade as a precautionary measure. It was coming up fast. Too fast, for that matter.

“Pull back! Back to center!” Allura’s eyes filled with fear as they neared the edge of the runway, and the cliff came seconds closer to their own demise. “Watch the barrier!” The Director warned seconds before they jumped right over it. 

“Hold on!” Shiro yelled as they slammed nose first into the snow. The snow blinded their vision, but when it cleared, it revealed that they were right at the cliff’s edge. Allura stiffened in panic. Keith, however, loosened his grip on the stick. He had gotten his wish for thrill, but at the cost of his friends’ lives. 

They froze at the cliff, Shiro letting out an audible breath of relief. He sucked it right back in when the icy edge before them cracked and shattered, falling the hundreds of feet to the pit’s bottom. They would be the next addition to the pit’s collection. The ship tipped down, forcing the riders to look their fate dead in the eyes. Even Shiro had a look of extreme worry in his eyes. Keith didn’t want any of this, and wished they could be spared because of his actions.

“Don’t move a muscle,” the director said, stating the obvious. Almost as if responding to Keith’s silent prayers, the ship slowly but surely straightened out, their deaths pushed off for another day. Keith and his friends slumped against their seats, their bodies and minds finally able to relax.

“Good job, team! You made it to the mission site! Welcome to Mars, and welcome to the astronaut corps.” The Director gave them a salute before the screen went black.

\---------------------------------------

“That was amazing!” Allura exclaimed, a smile on her face. “I really felt like a space astronaut.”

Shiro chuckled. “Yeah. It was. What did you think, Keith?” He looked back at his friend, a teasing smile on his face.

Keith looked back at him and shrugged. “Guess it was more realistic than I thought.”

“What did I tell you, Keith?” Allura joked. Keith rolled his eyes, refusing to admit that she was right. 

The trio exited out of a roofed walkway, the bright light of the Florida sun blazing down on them. Keith’s eyes were drawn to a water fountain the size of the courtyard. Water jetted out of the many levels with a gentle hiss, before it fell to the ground in sprinkles and mist, spraying the guests that were close enough to the fence surrounding it. To their right, the golf ball structure that was the Epcot Ball towered over the park, casting an elongated oval shadow over the park visitors. 

They walked along the right side of the fountain before reaching a bridge. Trees lined each side, providing a temporary means of relief from the heat. Water from a small lake passed underneath the bridge, ducks and herons wading and swimming around. As they reached the end of the bridge, they reached a fork in the path. Shiro and Allura lead to the right, holding hands, leaving Keith to follow behind. 

Keith tucked his hands in his pant pockets as he gazed out at the lake which World Showcase was built around. According to what Shiro told him, the lake is supposed to show how the countries of the world are all connected. Tell that to everything in the news now a days. It felt like everyone was at each other’s throats recently that it’s hard to find any kind of good in the world. He doubted that the most magical place on Earth could even help with that. 

The group crossed another bridge, with water from the lake forming a river out of the park. Allura gasped as she saw what was before them. “Shiro, look! It’s Paris!” A city landscape straight out of France rolled out in front of them, the aroma of pastries and other baked goods filling the air. Above the buildings was a mock statue of the Eiffel Tower, and not an impressive one at that.

“Keith! Can you take a picture of me and Shiro?” She asked, pulling out her rose gold iPhone. 

“Sure,” he replied, sliding the home screen to the right to reveal the camera.

Allura hurried to Shiro’s side. She smoothed out her black polka dot skirt. “Alright. Ready.” She leaned into Shiro and kissed his cheek, holding it there. She bent her on leg behind her, like all girls did when kissing someone, as Shiro rested his hand on her waist.

As Keith saw his friends on the phone screen, an unsettling realization hit him. This trip was for the two of them. It was Shiro who won it in the first place. He originally planned on inviting Allura. Keith was just to fill the required third spot. From the moment he stepped onto the plane, he felt out of place, but he couldn’t really place his fingers on it. Now he could, and it was crushing. He was just the third wheel. He snapped a few pictures before straightening.

Allura came over and looked at the photos. “Aww, Shiro! We look adorable!” She passed her phone too Shiro as he walked up next to her. 

“You take good photos, Keith,” he complimented. “You should consider it as a hobby.”

“Yeah, maybe.” Keith smiled, only to hide back the pain he was feeling inside.

\---------------------------------------

Keith did everything in his power not to collapse onto the nearest bed as soon as he entered their room. He was tired, but he wasn’t going to let the others see that. Allura and Shiro walked in behind him, heading straight for their luggage. 

“Alright, guys” Shiro spoke up, lifting his luggage up onto the bed with ease. “We have a Fastpass for Splash Mountain at 11:30. We should grab breakfast and be out of here by 10:30 if we want to get up to Magic Kingdom in time.”

“We do have an hour after that, in case we arrive late,” Allura pointed out, rolling her pink suitcase to Shiro’s bed. “I’m gonna take a look at the place,” Keith said, leaning against the wall by the door.

“Just be back soon,” Shiro replied. “We have a long day tomorrow.” 

Keith nodded before heading out the door into the cool night air. He shrugged on the red jacket he grabbed from his suitcase, popping the white collar before walking around the resort. He made sure to remember his surroundings so he wouldn’t get lost. However, he found it difficult, because every time he turned a corner, there was another damn palm tree. Instead, Keith wandered to a lake that stretched the span of the hotel. 

Seeing a nearby beach, he strode onto it, stuffing his hands in his coat pockets. He looked out at the water, the moon’s luminescence reflecting off the glassy surface. The only sound about was the rustling of cicadas and the water’s small waves. It was calming, but it could not soothe Keith’s racing thoughts. He kept flashing back to the event in France, and it made him question why he was here. Maybe it was because he knew he had nothing else better to do. But the real reason was to be with his best friend. Now he wasn’t so sure why he was still here. 

A small flash blinded his vision, interrupting his thoughts. He covered his eyes, his head turning to the side slightly. When it died down, he caught a silhouette of someone else on the other stretch of the beach. Why was that person alone? Probably for the same reason he was. For a moment, he felt sympathy for the man he didn’t even know. 

Keith uncovered his eyes, looking for the source of the light. He looked around, thinking it was a lightbulb bursting   but all the lights nearby were working. Confusion riddled his body, until an unknown force pulled his gaze upward. That was when he saw a star that outshone the others. It was pale blue in shade, but with a small tint of white. 

Keith never believed in fairy tales. They’re just used to tell moral stories, nothing else. He especially despised the ones where the prince and princess fell in love. Not everyone gets their happy ending. But his favorite one was that of Pinocchio. Making a wish on a star to escape reality for just a little was something he always wanted. Life had been rough for him, and so many times Shiro had helped him out of his funks. But reality came crashing back into his life every time. Maybe this star could be his one chance at an escape.

His features softened in the gentle glow of the star and moon. “Look, I’m not gonna ask for much,” Keith said aloud to the star, almost as if they were old friends. “I don’t even know how this whole wishing thing goes. Is there a phrase I have to say or something?” He sighed, his eyes filling with lost hope. “I just want this trip to be worthwhile. That’s all I’m asking for.”

Just moments after Keith spoke, he heard footprints in the sand. He turned his head to see the guy nearest him leaving, picking up his shoes before walking back into the forest of palm trees. He probably heard him and thought he was crazy for talking to the wind. When Keith looked back up at the sky, the star was gone. Was he just imagining the star? 

With a shrug, he walked back to his room, somehow knowing that Allura and Shiro would be asleep in each other’s arms. It didn’t take long for him to fall asleep with his long time companion, loneliness, by his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry the chapter is so late, band camp started up for me. Despite that, I stayed up countless nights to finish this for y'all. Hope you guys enjoyed!


	4. Make a Splash

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ship starts to sail, and they're diving right in

Lance never thought there would be anything worse than hearing Pidge and Hunk argue. Alas, he was wrong. Hearing Pidge and Hunk argue for almost an hour straight in line under blaring 90 degree weather was even worse. 

“I could have gone to visit Ariel and Belle in the time it takes for us to get on here,” Hunk complained, his arms thrown down at his sides. “I tried to tell you, Hunk,” Pidge tsked as she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “No one would have let you back in here, if you left. If anything, they’d kick you out.”

“I could’ve just waited for you two.”

“Why wait in the heat when you could get wet? Last time I checked, water helps with heat exhaustion.”

Hunk groaned and leaned against the railing that separated the different parts of the line. “They could have air conditioning.”

“That’s a huge if, Hunk.”

Lance sighed as the line inched forward. How his two friends managed to stay on a topic for this long was inconceivable to him. Yet, here they were. The first few minutes waiting was pretty chill. Pidge managed to pull out some memes that brought Hunk to tears. However, the growing heat caused the temper to rise in the group. Lance thought everything would be okay after last night. His hopes dropped. Maybe he was right. Wishes are just for kids and nothing serious. Now he was forced to spend a week with the people he cared for most when they were at their worst.

The arguing came to a sudden halt when the group entered a hallway with earthen walls on each side. Above them, air far colder than that of outside blanketed over the guests. Hunk closed his eyes, soaking in the much needed relief. “Now that’s more like it,” he said as he opened his eyes. 

Pidge’s body relaxed as the cool air hit her body. “I couldn’t agree more.” They continued down the hallway, glimpses of the loading area through holes in the structure. On the wall to their left, posters regarding each of the characters on the ride hung in wooden frames. Memories of looking at them as a kid flashed behind his eyelids, and Lance smiled softly.

They progressed to the loading area, where makeshift logs floated down the single path that led to the ride. Riders, dripping in water, stumbled out of the logs, pants sagging from being drenched. Others came out with just a few sprinkles on their shirts and hair. The mere probability of getting soaked or getting nothing at all sent thrills through Lance’s body. 

The loading area was circled in by saloon like houses, towering high above them in their Western like glory. They passed a sign, warning them of their last chance to exit. Who would willingly leave after waiting an hour?

As they neared the front of the line, a trio from the Fastpass line went into the last empty log loading station. Two filed into the first row and the third went into the row behind them.

“How many in your party?” A female attendant asked the group.

“Three,” Lance replied, stepping up to the front of the line. 

“One person on number four and two on five and six.” She motioned to the area the trio was at, the area broken up into four different rows. As they walked to the dock, Hunk turned to Lance and motioned to Pidge, who progressed to the row for two. 

“You want to sit with Pidge?” He asked.

Lance yearned to say yes, but something sparked in him. Hunk usually was the one who didn’t fare well alone. He thrived on the company of others, due to his formidable compassion. Lance knew that he wouldn’t enjoy the ride if he was sitting with a complete stranger. Instead, Lance  patted his shoulder. “It’s good man. You can sit with Pidge this time.”

Hunk looked him over, almost like he didn’t believe him. “You sure, man?”

Lance smiled softly. “Yes, I’m sure.” He saw the gates start to open, and gave Hunk a light push towards Pidge. “Go ahead. The gates are opening.”

Hunk nodded, some uncertainty still in his eyes as he rushed to his spot next to Pidge.

Lance could see the excitement in their eyes as they settled into the seats. The duo chatted as if their argument never happened. Lance was happy to see them back to their old selves, but at the cost of his exclusion of the group. He strode over to the number four spot as the attendant called out for a party of two.

The person in front of him, with a red flannel tied around his waist and other black attire, stepped over the side. Lance followed in, swinging his leg over the side as the gates closed behind them. The seat below him was dribbled with water droplets. He swiped his hand across it before dropping down next to the other person, hitting his leg. 

“Sorry,” Lance muttered out as the bar lowered onto their upper legs, securing them in place.

“It’s fine,” he mumbled back. His voice was lower in register, with some huskiness to its tone.

An attendant on the opposite side of the log pulled up on the bar, but it was already locked in place. He moved on to Pidge and Hunk, with the same result with their bar. However, the bar secured Hunk tight, almost too tight. As for Pidge, the bar hovered over her thighs by a good few inches. Mild worry crossed her face as the log was cleared for departure. 

Their log left the loading area behind as they entered a narrow passageway, leading straight up to a hill for the first drop. The passengers rumbled with the machinery as they crawled up the incline. Despite the suspense of the hill, the first drop was petite, as they merely splashed into what was called the Briar Patch. Branches with thorns breached the surface of the water, surrounding them on all sides. Screams suddenly filled the air. Lance whipped his head to their right, seeing as a log full of people fall down into the abyss that was the Briar Patch, their screams cutting off abruptly. Lance smiled at the scene, sending him into an adrenaline high. This was the stuff he loved as a kid, and still loved to this day. 

They sailed out of the Briar Patch and entered a shack, with an incline twice the size of the one before. Wooden beams that balanced boulders hovered over them as they neared the next drop. Water rushed underneath them just before they took their gentle descent into the next bend. Country music burst to life as a garden with a little tree home filed in on their left. Soap boxes with ads and clothing lines hung above them, painting something straight out of a small village. It reminded Lance of his own hometown.

As they continued into a shaded area, their path was cut short. They couldn’t see anything straight ahead as their water trail cut off like the horizon line. It wasn’t long before he heard Hunk’s screams as they fell down a larger drop, large waves lapping at them from both sides as they glided to a slower speed. 

Banjo music came to a crescendo as the country life of the Briar’s sprung to action. Animatronics interacted with each other like they had no cares in the world. Lance saw himself in Brer Rabbit, not needing to worry about what lied ahead unless it impacted him directly. Any animal from cranes to possums had an identity of its own. Lance found himself humming along to the nonsense worded tune he listened to countless times in his youth, swaying side to side with the song. 

“This is childish,” a voice spoke up beside him. Lance’s eyes widened in shock as he slowly turned his head towards the man sitting on his left. His arms were crossed in front of his chest, looking unamused. He saw that Lance had turned his head and returned his look with confusion. “What?”

“You did  _ not _ just say this ride is childish,” Lance replied with a little zip to it.

He shrugged. “I did. So what?”

Lance covered his hand over his heart, almost as if it physically ached. “Don’t say that about my baby.”

Rolling his eyes, the man scoffed. “I don’t care if it’s your ‘baby’ or not.” He unfolded his arms for a quick air quote. “It’s meant for a kid.”

“Let me give you a brief history here, buddy. This is based off of a Disney movie. Of course it’s going to be kinder for kids.”

He raised his dark eyebrows. “What are you getting at here?”

“What I’m getting at is, despite it being an immature ride, this is still a classic. It’s one of the Big Three for a reason.”

“I wouldn’t know, but thanks for the history lesson.” He gave a fake closed smile before slumping back into his unimpressed state. 

Lance almost jumped right out of his seat when Brer Rabbit came flying out from his hidden spot behind a tree, hollering some nonsense. He even heard Pidge let out a small yelp behind him. His neighbor, on the other hand, didn’t even move a muscle.

“Are you kidding me?” Lance groaned, throwing his arm out in front of the person next to him. “How did that not scare you?”

“What can I say? Childish stuff doesn’t scare me.” He replied with a small smirk, urging Lance to get fired up. 

It worked. “How many times do I have to tell you that this isn’t childish? It’s a family classic!”

“Yeah, a family that’s full of kids.” He faced him, a small glance at victory glinting in his eyes. 

Lance’s body tensed up. This guy, whoever the hell he was, was getting on his nerves. How could anyone be this unyielding regarding a log flume? Literally, it was more childish than his claims towards the ride. He was about to reply, pointer finger extended, when their log sank into total darkness. Lance started to lift out of his seat, gripping the bar for dear life. Everyone’s screams echoed in the tunnel before they landed into a dimly lit cave, beehives hanging above them. 

Suddenly, the last half of the ride came flooding back to him, and a devious smirk grew on his face. He was going to prove himself right once and for all. He waited until the second drop finished before speaking.

“You know, there’s a reason this appeals to a lot of people,” Lance started, forcing his smirk back. He wouldn’t give away his intentions. Not yet. 

“You cleared this up already,” The man with the mullet reminded him, looking bored of his attempts to be right.

Lance tsked. “That was you who brought up the family part. This also appeals to thrill seekers.”

“Thrill seekers like you that have a soft spot?”

“Nope. Full out thrill seekers who appreciate a good storyline.”

Lance motioned him to a scene playing on their left. Light-hearted laughter filled the air. However, Brer Rabbit, the hero of their story, had stopped his laughing long back. His enemy, Brer Fox, gripped him by the ears, a greedy grin tainting his long snout. Brer Rabbit was in a sticky situation, as he was trapped in a beehive, honey oozing out of the sides.

“So? It’s the natural order of life?”

Lance shushed him. “Just watch.”

Vultures wearing tuxedos and top hats perched above them, hands folded together in prayer. They joked amongst themselves at the inevitable fate of the riders as they trailed up to the heavens on a steep incline. Beady red eyes followed them up, eagerly awaiting their perilous demise. The man shrunk a bit from their gaze. 

Cackling filled the space on their left. A turn of the head revealed a massive cauldron, boiling for a fresh rabbit stew. Brer Rabbit was the main ingredient. He was tied to a wooden pole with rope, bundling him up like a blanket. His face was fear-stricken as the shadow of Brer Fox loomed over him, jaws open in hunger.

“By the way, watch out for the drop,” Lance said, a smile plastered on his face. 

He tore his eyes from the scene, his face laced with confusion. “What dro-” He was cut short as they nose dived straight into heart of the Briar Patch, thorns surrounding their watery grave. Screams and yells drowned out any other sounds as plummeted down the drop. The riders lifted out of their seats, only to be held down by the lap bar. Lance heard Pidge laughing as she screamed, while Hunk just straight out screamed. 

One moment, Lance blinked his eyes shut, a rush of coolness brushing his skin. The next, he opened them, wiping his eyes from water. They were below a bridge, spectators watching their faces as they came safely out of the drop. Lance ran a hair through his damp hair, the country music from before starting back up again. 

“That was insane!” Pidge exclaimed as she tried to find a dry patch of clothing to wiped her glasses on.

“Right?” Hunk replied, surprisingly not sick. “The fox was like ‘Grr’, and the rabbit was like ‘Don’t eat me!’. Then we were all ‘Ah!’ It was amazing!”

Lance laughed as he overheard his friends’ conversation. This was the first time in days that he had heard Pidge and Hunk as their genuine selves. Hopefully things would stay this way. No arguing, except with Mr. Childish. Just the three of them like they were in their hometown. Speaking of Mr. Childish, he glanced over at him, eager to see how he reacted to the aftermath of the ride. 

At first glance, he thought that he didn’t even get wet. A closer look revealed otherwise. His black hair fell from its mullet style in glossy loose clumps around his face. His black T-shirt was more fitted than it was when they first entered, almost as if it clung to his body. He got it worse than Lance had, even though they were in the same row. His face was another story. It was like a baby had just crawled into a candy store for the first time: too much to process in such little time.

Lance leaned in slightly to him as they entered one final animated scene. Around them, animals celebrated the return of Brer Rabbit with a classic song, “Zip A Dee Doo Dah”. Hens danced the Can Can, skirts held high, on a eggshell white ferry boat rimmed with flashing lights. The sunset in the background blended oranges and purple hues to cement together the happy ending. 

“Well?” He asked his sitting partner, a pleased smile on his face. “I hope that now you’ll see my side of things.”

He didn’t look at Lance, rather at the activity around them. “I see we’re back at the kiddie parts again.”

Lance’s jaw almost dropped to the floor of the log. He just experienced a 50 foot drop, almost fell out of his seat, and  _ this  _ was the response that he got? This guy was impossible to impress!

“What?” Lance burst as they neared the loading dock. “Who do you think you are, Mr. Tough Guy?”

“First of all, the name’s Keith. Second, why even include that scene? Leave it on a high note.”

“This is a high note. Brer Rabbit gets a happy ending!” He motioned to the hero of their story, relaxing against a rocking chair with his bluejay friend. 

“Not every story has a happy ending,” he declared before grabbing his red backpack and exiting the ride opposite of where they had entered. 

Lance, angered by how heartless this guy was, stuck right on Keith’s trail as soon as the bar lifted from his lap. He almost lost him in the crowd, but that mullet was hard to miss. Once he got close enough, Lance grabbed the back of Keith’s shirt, still damp from the ride, and pulled him in front of the photo station. 

“Look,” he ordered, pointing out the photo that was snapped during their free fall. “Look at your face and tell me that is not the face of someone who loved every second of it.”

In the photo, Lance’s usual smile was gone as complete fear took over. His mouth was shaped like an oval, as if he was mid-scream. Pidge was, to his surprise, holding onto Hunk for dear life. Then there was Keith. His mullet peeled back from his face, revealing more of his deathly pale skin. Unlike the others, captured during their screams, Keith looked like he was hollering. The corners of his mouth were stretched into an amused smile.

Keith rolled his eyes. “That was just an adrenaline rush. I love thrilling rides.” 

“Excuses, excuses.” Lance pressed his Magicband against the pad below their photo.

“Are you saving that photo?” Keith asked.

“Duh. It’s my vacation, too. Plus, your face is priceless. Deny this ride all you want, but that look says otherwise.”

Keith shrugged and placed his red Magicband against the pad as well. “Then I’m saving this for your face. Not every day you get to see a childish man scream at the top of his lungs.”

Lance gasped. “I, sir, am not a childish man. I am a kid in a man’s body.”

Keith smirked. “My point exactly. Only someone like you would like this ride for the storyline and animation.”

Did Keith just admit he was right? It wasn’t a straight up confession, but he would take anything he could get from this Negative Nancy.

Lance nodded, sighing. “And I guess you’re the only person who would like this for the thrill.”

“Glad you’re finally seeing my side of things.”

“You know, if you’re a thrill junkie, there are less kiddie options in the park,” Lance said. “I could show you around if you wanted.”

“Thanks for the offer, but I really need to get back to my group.” Keith pointed behind his shoulder to the exit.

“Yeah, me too. It’s gonna be hard to find Pidge, since she’s so short.” Lance chuckled as they headed for the exit of the gift shop.

The two emerged on the outside, suddenly swamped with the midday summer heat of Florida. Lance could already feel the wet spots on his clothes shrinking just by stepping out into the sun. 

“Well, it was nice meeting you,” Keith said as he looked around the swarming crowd for his group. 

“Same here,” Lance replied almost half-assed, distracted by scanning the crowds for any sign of a girl decked in green or a tall Samoan with a yellow headband. Even after stretching up on his tippy toes, there were still no signs of his friends. What happened to them?

“Can’t find your group either?” Keith asked, clearly coming up empty handed.

“Yeah. Usually they don’t just leave like this without saying anything.”

As if on cue, Lance’s phone rang in his backpack pocket. Keith’s went off at the same time. He reached over and pulled out his iPhone. It was probably Pidge trying to figure out where the hell he was. Instead, his head almost exploded when he saw her text.

“Saw how you two we’re getting along. So Hunk and I decided to give you guys some alone time. See you back at the room! ;)”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so, ironically, I'm going to Disney World next week. So the next chapter might be a while. Just thought I should give you guys a heads-up.


	5. Venture into the Unknown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance start to wage war

Keith never expected for Shiro and Allura to leave him behind with a stranger that he just met. But Shiro’s message to him was all he needed to prove him wrong.

“Saw you two were busy talking, and we didn’t want to interrupt. We’ll meet you back at the hotel. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”

Keith sighed as he pocketed his phone. Of course he would do stuff he wouldn’t do. He was stubborn like that. He looked back up at Lance, seeing the same surprised expression on his face. 

“Let me guess,” Keith started. “Your friends left you, too?”  
Lance blinked, almost as if he was in a daze, and nodded. “Yeah,” he replied as he tucked his phone back into his bag. “Guess we’re stuck together for the rest of the day.”

Keith thought about his statement. Did he really want to get spend the rest of the day with Lance? He’d probably show him rides he used to go on as a kid, stuff that Keith had no interest. He wanted excitement and he made that very clear. Something inside him told him that Lance wanted it, too. On the other side of things, he had no clue where the hell he was going. This place was as foreign to him as a maze on the back of a cereal box. Lance said he’d been here before. Maybe he could actually help him enjoy his vacation.

“Alright,” Keith agreed. “But none of those kiddie rides.”  
Lance smiled and saluted. “Scout’s honor.”  
“Were you even a scout?”  
“Yes.” He struck a confident pose, which quickly slumped. “Well, only in the second grade.”  
“What made you quit?”  
“In the words of my seven-year old self? The uniforms were too stiff.”  
Keith rolled his eyes at his response. “Clearly a valid reason.”

The two boys walked out of the Splash Mountain area, continuing onto a bridge that overlooked the drop of the ride. Keith replayed the moment of that drop, bringing a small smile to his face. Out of all the rides he went on, this was the one that surprised him the most. Who would have ever thought of making a log flume that determined to make you scream? The answer was obviously Disney. 

“So where are we going?” Keith asked as they walked through the rustic town of Frontierland. Saloons and Western style houses with multiple shades of wood lined the right side of the street. To the left was a small island, surrounded by a moat of water.   
“I think I have something in mind for you,” Lance replied.   
“Care to elaborate?”  
“It’s called Tomorrowland. Everything’s all futuristic.” His fingers on his hands wiggled as he said futuristic. “They have spaceships and retro tech. It’s all so crazy to look at.” His eyes sparkled with excitement, like a little kid in a candy store.   
“What’s there that I could possibly like?” Keith asked with a raised eyebrow.  
Lance glanced down at him and smirked. “Do you always like to question everything I say?”  
“I just like knowing what I’m walking into before trusting my day in the hands of a stranger.”  
“Learn to let loose, man. You’re in Disney World!” He spun to face Keith, his arms extended far on either side of him. “It’s the most magical place on Earth!” He wore a grin that could outshine any sun. 

Keith never believed in that whole idea of magic. It was just some escape for people to confide in when everything else failed. All that flipped on its head when Keith wished upon that star. Maybe he was just like everyone else, believing in magic like a fool. Then there was Lance. He was a fool who believed in magic. Yet, the way he held himself, proud in his belief, was stronger than anything he saw. Lance’s childish personality was his magic.

As Lance turned away, Keith cracked a small smile. He was happy that Lance didn’t see it. The last thing he needed was giving Lance the benefit of the doubt.

“Magic or not, I’m still expecting that thrill factor,” Keith said as Lance caught back up with him.  
“There will be plenty of stuff for your little thrill heart, don’t worry your mullet head over it.”  
Keith glanced at him. “Did you just make fun of my mullet?”  
“No. I simply stated that your head has a mullet on it,” Lance hummed.  
“I don’t think it’s that bad.” He ran his hand through the ends of his hair that barely brushed his shoulders.  
“If you’re from the 80s, it isn’t. We’re in 2017. Change with the times.”  
“Thanks for the offer, but I’ll pass.”  
Lance shrugged. “Your choice, man.”

They remained in silence as they continued through the park. The crowds of people swamped them on either side, making it hard to maneuver. It didn’t help that the heat coiled around them like a blanket. As they crossed behind Cinderella’s Castle, the soft music of the Carousel played in the background. The gentle laughter of children was the harmony to that music, creating a beautiful symphony. It reminded Keith of something straight out of a story book.

As they crossed past the famous Mad Hatter Tea Cups, the roar of an engine banged against Keith’s eardrum. Keith turned to look for the source of the sound, and immediately found himself at home. There, in front of his very eyes, was the Tomorrowland Speedway. Cars zipped around every turn in a rainbow arch, riders of all ages laughing their cares away. Keith slowed to a stop, unable to tear his eyes away from the attraction.

“What are you doing?” Lance asked. His question was enough to snap him back to reality.  
Keith turned to look at him. “Can we do that?” He asked, motioning to the Speedway with his thumb.  
“You want to do that?” Lance walked back over to him. “I thought you wanted thrill.”  
“Is that a challenge, Lance?” Keith met his eyes, a small fire of competitiveness in his eyes.  
Lance froze, almost as if he was surprised by Keith’s taunt. Suddenly, he chuckled. “Oh, you’re on, hot shot.” 

They bolted to the line of the ride before it got any longer. Despite their rush, they still ended up having to wait a behind a line about 60 people thick. Keith leaned against the railing, his arms crossed in front of his chest.

“Just so you know, I’m the the fastest driver in my town.” Lance stuck his chin out, his mouth curled into a confident smirk.   
“I doubt you even go 5 miles above the speed limit,” Keith responded with a scoff.   
Lance’s smile faltered. “How dare you! I’ll have you know I went over the speed limit twice!”  
“By what? Two miles per hour?” The smirk from Lance’s face transferred to Keith’s.  
“No.” Lance looked down, his confidence nearly gone. “It was one mile per hour.”  
Keith fought back every urge to burst out laughing. “Truly a rebel in our midsts.”  
“What I’m trying to say is that I can still kick your ass.”  
“You can try, but I’m the fastest guy I know when it comes to racing,” Keith said, almost like he was proud of it.  
“I can definitely see you being a speedster.” The line moved forward in front of them. Keith pushed off of the railing and went to catch up.  
“What about me makes you think I’m a speed junkie?”   
“I think if our little chat in Splash Mountain says anything, it says that you love anything that’s fast.” Lance chuckled as he stopped behind the line. “Plus, out of all the rides you could have picked, you chose race cars.”   
Keith had to admit: Lance was right about that.  
“I do a bit of drag-racing,” he admitted nonchalantly.   
“You mean the kind of stuff you see in ‘The Fast and Furious’ movies?” Lance asked, his eyebrow peaked in intrigue.  
“Not quite. In my races, we don’t work for undercover agencies or blow up everything in sight.”  
Lance pouted. “Man, your races are so boring! You need to get some cool jumps, too.” He slanted his hand at a 45 degree angle, much like a ramp. “Then have some explosions in the background.” He curled both his hands into fists and released them, much like the burst of a firework, with some added sound effects.  
Keith smirked. “I’ll work on it with the other racers.”

Before they could move onto another topic, an attendant at the front of the line looked over at them.   
“How many?” He asked them.  
“Two,” Lance said. “We can get two separate cars, right?”  
The attendant, whose name tag said Josh, nodded. “Yeah. Just ask the people when you get to the cars and they can make that happen.”  
“Sweet! Thanks.” Lance flashed him a smile before continuing through to the second portion of the line. 

Keith nodded at Josh as he passed. They ended up going down a large ramp as they descended into the pit. People of all ages skid into the loading dock, chatting up a storm as they waited in a massive line of cars that stretched back a good portion of the track. As they neared the front of the line, Lance went in front of Keith. 

“Party of two, and two separate cars, please,” he told the worker.  
“Numbers 4 and 5 then,” she replied, motioning them over to the numbers. Keith and Lance rushed over to their respective numbers. They ended up across from each other, each on individual tracks.  
“You’re going down,” Lance called over to him with a confident smile.  
Keith met his smile with a smirk. “You’re the one going down, Lance.”

Two cars pulled up in front of them. Lance had a cobalt blue car, with yellow stripes running down the side. Keith, however, got a fiery red race car with black trimmings. He climbed inside, pulling the seat belt from over his left hip and to the buckle on his right. Attendants walked by Lance and Keith to make sure that they were buckled in. As the green light beamed above both of them, Keith slammed his foot on the gas pedal. The race had begun.

Keith maneuvered through the few curves in the road, not letting his car brush the metal rim that kept it on track. The only thing that mattered in those first moments were Keith and the highway before him as the wind played with his hair. However, when Lance appeared out of the corner of his eye, Keith snapped out of his spell, jeering slightly to the right. 

“Surprised to see me?” Lance asked with a smug look on his face.  
“As if,” Keith teased as he straightened out his car.  
Lance pouted. “You’re no fun when you’re competitive.”  
“Who said competing was fun?” Keith pushed down on the gas, propelling him further ahead.

Keith lost his view of Lance as he started to trail behind him. He inched forward in his seat until his chin was hovering over the wheel. The hum of the engine calme any nerves that may have formed. Lance was close on his tail, but he wasn’t about to let that get in the way of his victory.

As they rounded the bend into the next stretch of road, Lance started to pull ahead of him. As he started to pass Keith, they locked eyes. Lance grinned and offered Keith a two-fingered salute before he pulled ahead. Keith only groaned before slamming his foot down on the gas pedal.

Keith sped down the track and soon approached Lance’s front bumper. Lance was smiling to himself in victory, convinced he had won. Once he saw Keith’s car, that smile got slapped off of his face.

“Miss me?” Keith shouted over the roar of the engine.

Lance ignored him as the finish line was fast approaching. It was now or never. Keith would not hand Lance this win without a fight. All Keith saw in his field of vision was the checkered sign above the track and the loading docks in front of them. As he zipped under the sign, he lifted his heavy foot off of the gas pedal. A familiar groan from behind him confirmed that he had won. 

They pulled into the docks and exited their cars. Lance was quick to run up to Keith’s side.

“That was so not fair!” Lance protested, his face twisted in mild anger.  
“What part of that wasn’t fair?” Keith asked with a small shrug. “I was just faster than you.”  
“These cars all go at the same max speed. Did you rig yours?” The Cuban blocked Keith’s path on the ramp, his arms crossed in front of his chest.  
His response was enough to make Keith roll his eyes. “Yes, I clearly know how to rig a mock race car even though this is my first time.” He moved past Lance and towards the staircase that led back to the park.  
Lance scuttled down the steps and to Keith’s side. “I’m calling for a rematch.”  
Keith sighed. “Not gonna lie, but I’ll probably beat you again.”  
Lance shook his head. “I’m not asking for a rematch on the cars.”  
“Then where?”

Lance stopped Keith in his tracks and pointed to the sign of an indoor ride. It was highlighted in alien green with a galaxy background. Keith narrowed his eyes in speculation.

“Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin?” Keith questioned, shooting a small look of confusion at Lance.  
“Trust me, it’s a fun ride. Plus, it’s just as competitive as your little race cars. Whoever gets the most points wins. Deal?”

Keith glanced back at the entrance to the ride with hesitance. It did look a bit below his standards from the outside. Then again, he was proven wrong about outward appearances before.

“Fine,” Keith finally said. “Maybe you can reel back from that loss at the track.” He gave a teasing smirk before walking into the building.  
“So why this ride?” Keith asked as they strolled through the line.  
“I have a small attachment to it from when I was little,” he replied. “Also, being able to fight bad guys in space is pretty awesome for a small kid..”  
“Who doesn’t want to go to space?”  
Lance looked at him in surprise. “You actually want to go to space?”  
“It would be cool,” Keith admitted,” but there’s no way it’s going to happen.”  
“Who knows? Maybe NASA will need recruits for a space mission to Mars.”  
“Maybe.”

They approached a small pod that had the winged logo of Star Command on the front with a blue background. It was highlighted in the same alien green that carried onto the back. The very back held a battery pack, lined with a small red thruster. The seats were covered with a green desk that had two lasers mounted onto it. The attendant, when they reached the end of the line, directed them to their pod. Lance moved in first, followed by Keith. 

Keith eyed the blaster in front of him. “So this is a shooting game?”  
“Yes sir,” Lance replied as he fiddled with his own blaster. 

Keith wasn’t the best at shooting games. He preferred either some kind of weapon other than a gun in games, but this is what Lance wanted, and he couldn’t rob him of that. 

Before Keith could make a smart remark, a worker walked up to the pod and closed the small door that blocked their exit. 

“You sure you don’t want to back out?” Lance asked.   
“As if,” Keith scoffed. “So what do we do?”  
“Just shoot at the targets. It’s not that hard.”

Keith rolled his shoulders to calm himself. Shooting games were always easier said than done.  
Next thing Keith knew, his pod was off and moving. His hands moved to the curved grip of the blaster, the trigger resting easy under his tense finger. The pod entered a narrow tunnel, painted in dark, earthy colors. It eventually opened up into a neon wonderland of aliens and other creatures. Yellow targets with a purple Z plastered the figures that popped in and out of their hiding places.

Out of the corner of Keith’s eye, Lance started firing like a madman. With that, Keith started his barrage on the targets. However, Keith found with each shot he fired, his confidence sank. He missed almost every target he aimed at, and sat helpless as he watched the red circle as it drifted by the center of each target. His grip on the blaster tightened as his anger rose beneath his skin.

Keith took another look at Lance since his attempts at shooting were clearly getting him nowhere but the loser’s circle. His eyes were locked onto each target that passed them, and his eyebrows were knitted in extreme focus and concentration. 

Keith glanced down at the small pad that rested near his chest. In red numbers displayed his overall score of 5,000. It was a mediocre score at best. He was proven how mediocre it really was when he saw Lance’s score of 55,000.

By the time the pod had reached the unloading dock, Keith’s score only doubled to 10,000. Lance’s score was just over 100,000. When the door slid open, Keith exited in defeat.

“Hah! In your face, Mullet!” Lance boasted, hopping with joy as they exited the ride.   
“Hey, it’s not my fault,” Keith protested, his hands crossed in front of his chest. “My gun wasn’t working.”  
“Yeah, keep telling yourself that.”

As they exited Buzz Lightyear, the sun had peaked at the top of Cinderella’s Castle, leaving a lasting shadow on Tomorrowland. Keith watched the sunset with his hand propped at his eyebrows to block out any oncoming light. The sun mixed with the luminescent lights of the buildings to create an ethereal effect, as if they were really in space. 

“How did you get such a high score in that game?” Keith asked Lance as they walked towards the center of Tomorrowland.   
“When I was little, I kept begging my parents to take me in.” Lance chuckled at the memory. “They eventually got so tired of it that they left my brothers to take me in while they went out for a night on the town.”  
“Do you know how many times you went in there?”   
Lance rubbed his chin“Over all the times I’ve been here, at least thirty. Maybe more. I lost track after the third trip.”  
“That’s crazy.” Keith watched him in mild surprise.  
Lance only shrugged. “It was always for family vacations, mainly reunions. A tradition of sorts.”

Keith thought to himself in the oncoming dusk. He wished he would have had that luxury when he was growing up. Moving from household to household with his dad was difficult for the both of them, so most of their money was put aside for future moves. They never really had anything for vacations, unless it was the local fair that came to town every summer.

As they crossed the space, a large building loomed over them on the right. It was in the shape of a flattened cone, with white ridges popping out from the surface. The top was flattened, with a few spiked towers peaking out like telephone poles. 

“Hey, what’s that?” Keith asked Lance as he pointed to the building. Lance turned to see what it was he was pointing at and froze. His face flushed to a paler version of his already dark skin.   
“Space Mountain,” Lance answered with a softer voice. “Nothing that big of a deal. It’s just another rollercoaster”  
“Rollercoaster?” Keith turned fully to face the ride. “What are we waiting for? Let’s go.” As he started to walk forward, Lance’s arm shot out to stop him.  
“Hold up. Don’t you want to, I don’t know, grab dinner first?”  
“You’re kidding, right?” Keith scoffed. “Eating before going on a rollercoaster is the worst thing you could do.”  
“Oh. Right.” Lance laughed nervously.   
“Come on, Lance.” He grabbed the other’s arm, only to find it immovable. Keith groaned and looked back at Lance. “What’s wrong?”  
“What makes you think something’s wrong? Nothing’s wrong, don’t worry about it,” Lance rambled with a fake smile slapped on his face.   
Keith turned back to Lance with a raised eyebrow. “It’s all over your face, Lance. Why don’t you want to go in?”  
Lance looked at him for a moment and sighed.”You want to know?” He stuffed his hands in his pockets. “It was my first time here with my family. I was eight, I think. My parents were off doing their own thing, so I was left with my older siblings. We came right by here and they saw this ride. I didn’t want to go on, but then again, I didn’t really have a choice.” A low soft chuckle rumbled in his throat. “I was scared of the dark, like every other kid. So when I found out that it was in the dark, I tried to get out. My brothers didn’t care. They dragged me on and made me ride. I never been more scared in my entire life.”

Keith watched him in silence, letting the words sink in. He never took Lance to be the type to be afraid of the dark. In fact, he didn’t look like he was really afraid of anything. But his story threw all of his assumptions out of the water.

He personally knew what it was like to be in that exact same situation, being forced to do something that you had no say in. It’s traumatizing, and haunts you for a while. Not only that, but it breaks any trust you might have had with that person. Keith couldn’t even imagine what his relationship with his brothers is like now. It probably was best not to push about it.

“I’m sorry,” Keith spoke up in a soft voice. “about what happened.”  
Lance simply shrugged. “Thanks, but there’s not much to do about it, is there?”

That’s when a light bulb burst in Keith’s mullet-covered head. “I think there is,” he replied with a newfound determination.   
Lance turned his head to Keith, raising his pointed eyebrow at the other. “What are you talking about?”  
“That was how many years ago, Lance? Ten? We’re adults. We can’t let our fears get the best of us. Plus, do you really want to live the rest of your life afraid of the dark because of one bad memory?”  
Lance’s eyes drifted to the ground as he avoided answering.  
“My point,” Keith said when no answer came from Lance’s mouth. “Now come on. We’re conquering your fear.” With that, he took Lance’s forearm in his hand and dragged him towards the entrance of Space Mountain. 

The white coned castle loomed over them like Lance’s haunting fear as they entered the standby line of the ride. Soon enough, they delved down into a tunnel lit with various shades of cerulean underlighting. A railing separated the two parts of the line as they progressed into the great unknown. As they reached the bottom of the tunnel, which eventually curved upwards into a steady incline, Keith glanced back at Lance. 

The low lighting made the edges in his face stand out. The worry in his inky blue eyes only amplified as they scanned the walls of his worst nightmare. Lance fidgeted, running his hands over his knuckles in a brisk fashion. It was clear that the sight was enough to make him crawl out of his skin. 

Keith knew that this wasn’t what Lance wanted, but it was something he needed. He knew all too well the meaning of that. Keith wanted to find his biological mother for as long as he could remember. It was like a hole inside of him that couldn’t be filled, unless he found the woman who had abandoned him all those years ago. The more he looked back on it, he realized that meeting his mother wasn’t something he needed. Keith was fully content with the way his life was playing out. Shiro was there to protect him, more than his mother ever was, and he had people that cared about him. In the end, all of that was better than having a mom who couldn’t be there for her son. 

So yeah, Keith knew exactly what Lance was dealing with. It may not really be under the same set of circumstances, but nevertheless, this is something that Lance must overcome. He just needed the push to act on it.

“You know what I find funny about this whole thing?” Keith pondered out loud.  
Lance turned his gaze from the walls of the tunnel to Keith. “What?”  
“Earlier you said that every ride in Disney should be treated equally. And here you are, with a strong dislike towards this one.”  
Lance puffed his chest out. “This one is different. Maybe my opinion will change, maybe it won’t. Depends on how I feel by the end.”

Keith shook his head with the smallest of smiles. They continued to follow the path of the ride, passing by intergalactic maps to new stations to transport all kinds of life forms. As the line came to a halt, the boys found themselves in front of a small video game. Buttons of the basic shapes and colors lit the panel seated on top of the railing. A screen on the nearby wall told them their mission: direct ships to the loading docks that match the color of your buttons. 

“Bet I can get more ships than you,” Lance challenged, and their race was on.   
There was a flood of button mashing as each man tried to outnumber the other. Their small cranes from the space station stretched out in a flash to find the ships that would get them the most points. Their bodies were hunched over the buttons in a deep-rooted focus, eyes narrowed to narrow their vision to only the screen. 

“So why help me?” Lance suddenly asked, completely breaking Keith’s built up concentration.   
Keith quickly caught Lance in the corner of his eye, noticing how Lance hadn’t looked away from the screen to talk.   
“Excuse me?” Keith replied, returning his focus onto the screen in front of him.  
“Why are you helping me conquer my fear? A few hours ago, I was just a stranger who was way too excited about Disney rides and wanting to prove you wrong.”  
Keith waited until his newest capture got loaded to the station to reply. “Yes, you were a stranger. And you still are. But I know that you care too much about this park to let one ride ruin that for you.” He straightened as the game’s ending screen replaced that of the play screen. “Congrats,” Keith said as he walked off to catch up with the line that has progressed a long while ago. 

Lance eventually caught up to Keith, abandoning his spot at the game for another hopeful player. The tunnel eventually opened up, revealing two loading docks straight out of a sci-fi movie. A clerk stationed where the lines split into two directed them towards the right, where the line dropped off significantly. As they crossed to the other side, a train modeled like a spaceship coasted from the loading dock to the start of the ride. Before long, they were submerged in darkness. Keith could hear an audible gulp from Lance. He probably saw the dispatch.

The two weaved through the line, eventually ending up where the gate was. Lance’s hands were shaking in a failed attempt to calm his nerves. When they were given their numbers to stand on, Keith chose to take the number behind Lance. He’d rather be able to see Lance than sit in front and have no idea if he was okay or not. 

As the train approached from around the corner and stopped in front of them. The gates blocking their way opened to their fate. Keith took a wide step over the rim of the car and carefully lowered himself into the extremely low seat of the ride. He tucked his legs through the loops of his bag before pulling the bar in front of him down to his lap. 

It wasn’t long before the train crawled forward to where an attendant was waiting. She walked up to each rider once the train stopped and had them tug up on the bar to confirm that they were secure. Once she gave the okay, she pressed a button on the control panel, sending them through a dark tunnel, with only a window to look out at those in line.

“How you holding up?” Keith asked the brunette in front of him.  
“Oh great, totally great,” Lance replied as he glared over his shoulder at Keith. Keith could see the unease in his eyes, hidden behind his flecks of blue that faked confidence.  
“You’ll be fine.”

Just as Keith spoke, the train launched forward into a small curve. Everything in front of them delved into a pitch black. Keith tried holding his hand up to his face, but he couldn’t even make out the outline of the edge of his hand. 

Suddenly, a burst of blue light blinded Keith’s vision. When his eyes finally adjusted, he found the train in a tunnel pulsing with various hues and shades of sapphire. Waves passed by them as they originated from a beating circle at the end of the tunnel, its beats matching the sound of a high pitched whistle. At the end of the tunnel, the circle burst into a white light, causing them to veer to the left. Lance let out a small yelp when they made the sudden turn.

The train trailed up from the now dark space into a crimson lit room. Astronauts in their white suits hung upside down, almost as if fixing something outside of a spaceship. Lance leaned over the edge of the car slightly to look around. Keith followed, but suddenly jumped when a rush of screams came from below them. Another train full of passengers rushed through the space before fading into nothing. Lance jerked back, letting out a small yell. 

“That’s it! I’m going to die here!” Lance exclaimed, running a quick hand through his hair.  
“Lance, you are not going to die,” Keith let out with a sigh.  
“Yes I am! All because I let some guy with a mullet drag me in here!”   
Keith stretched from his seat to look at Lance and found him struggling to lift the bar off of his lap. Instead, it pressed more into his thighs.  
“These things are built to keep us safe. Don’t mess with them.” Slowly, Lance stopped trying to force the bar off of him. “Thank you.”  
“I’m scared, Keith.” A small quiver was faint in his voice.  
“It’ll be okay. Just hold on and don’t close your eyes.” 

Keith leaned back just when the train peaked over the edge of the hill. His nails dug into the padded bar just as they were wrenched to the side. The world seemed to fall from under them as they plummeted into darkness with nothing to stop them. He screamed as they fell, only stopping when they reached a straight-away, only to continue screaming when they are yanked once again to the right. 

Keith could see Lance’s head bob back and forth in tune with the direction of the ride. When they reached the very top of the ride, Keith looked up at the ceiling to see white specks scattered across a dark background. Gazing at the fake stars for that small moment reminded him of the nights he spent on his roof, escaping the troubles of home just for a while. A small smirk tucked at the corner of his mouth. However, it was ripped right off when they dipped into a nosedive, and the stars in Keith’s vision disappeared. 

Lance screamed the loudest out of anyone. Keith could even hear it over his own screams, which said a lot. Keith was forced back into his seat as they plunged straight into the crimson room they were in before. He only caught a glimpse of the astronauts above him before darkness consumed them once more. From there, it was back to head jerking and sudden twists, turns, and drops that could make anyone’s stomach fall to the floor.

It wasn’t long before they pulled into a blinking tunnel of red before eventually slowing down into the unloading dock. The train stopped with a faint hiss and the bar keeping them in lifted off. Keith pulled his legs out from the loops of his bag and carefully stepped out over the edge of the car onto the unloading dock. He walked forward, swinging his bag back onto his back.  
Keith spotted some screens on the wall adjacent to them. Displayed on them were photos that were taken at the beginning of the ride. Keith scanned the screens until he found a photograph that displayed both him and Lance. He was unphased in the picture, but Lance was entirely different story. His face was scrunched up in worry, and his body folded in on itself as they entered the darkness in front of them. Lance’s posture was much like that of a child in a dark room without a night light. 

“Hey, not fair!” Lance yelled behind him. He approached Keith, staring furiously at the screen. His hair was shambled, almost as if he was in a windstorm, and he was attempting to return it to its former glory. “I did not look like that!”  
“Uh, you definitely did,” Keith replied, glancing over at him.   
“Keith, the proof is in front of you! I look like I’m constipated.”  
That was enough to make Keith snicker. “Wasn’t thinking you looked like that, but that works too.” With that, he touched his Magicband to the glowing green Mickey below the screen.  
Lance gasped. “Why are you saving that? Delete it!”  
“Too late. And I’m saving it because of your face.” Keith turned and walked towards the exit.  
“Keith, you better get rid of that right now! You hear me, Mullet?” Lance rushed after him.

Keith stepped on a conveyor belt that took guests up a steep hill. To his right were landscapes of fake vacation destinations for various locations in space. Lance eventually caught up to him, looking over at the Mars exhibit, complimentary with a NASA Rover. 

“You know, my face on that photo was wrong,” Lance stated.   
Keith looked over at him with an arched eyebrow. “What are you talking about?”  
“Because I totally loved that ride from the start.” Lance crossed his arms in front of his chest in confidence.  
It took everything Keith had not to laugh out loud. “Are you serious? Your incoherent screaming says otherwise.”  
Lance whipped his head to Keith in mock offense. “Those were screams of joy, mind you!”  
“No they weren’t. What was it you said before we even reached the hill? Oh yeah, it was ‘Oh, I’m going to die!’” He raised his voice in a mock impression of Lance’s voice.   
“I-I was only adding some suspense.”  
“Whatever you say, Lance.” Keith chuckled to himself. “Whatever you say.”

\-------------------------

The moon hung over the lake, letting its cerulean light shine down in gentle streaks. The light peeked through the small gaps of the palm trees and speckled the concrete path below. They faded as Keith and Lance stepped over them, only to return after their presence moved away. Keith took in the lake to their left, spotting the moon’s reflection of the glassy surface of the water. It regarded the two boys as they strolled through the hotel grounds. The only real sounds that could be heard were the faint chirping of cicadas and their footsteps against the pavement.

“When did you get here?” Keith asked, breaking the silence between them.  
“Yesterday,” Lance replied. “You?”  
“Same here.” Keith tucked his hands into his pockets. Despite the earlier heat, the temperature had dropped a fair amount, leaving for a cooler night air.   
“My friend Hunk hated the flight, though,” Lance said with a small smile. “He never was the best with turbulence.”  
“I’m guessing he gets sick easily.” Keith turned his head to look at the Cuban boy.  
“Easily is a simple way of putting it. If you put him on a roller coaster, he’d throw up before the first drop. Here, I’ll show you.” He pulled out his phone and opened up the Disney mobile app. Lance accessed the photos he had saved to his account and showed Keith a photo from Expedition Everest. Before Keith could interject, Lance shoved the phone in his face. A heavier set man next to Lance was leaning over the edge of the coaster. A girl in a bright green outfit laughed behind them, while Lance was only concerned about getting vomit on his clothes.   
“God, that’s gross.” Keith took only a small look before pushing the phone back in Lance’s direction.  
“I should be used to it by now, but I’m not. I warned Hunk not to eat that massive turkey leg before going on. He didn’t believe me.” Lance shut off his phone and tucked it back in his pocket.  
“Who was that girl behind you?” Keith asked.   
“Oh, that’s Pidge. She prefers if people call her that. Her real name’s Katie.”  
“Is it only you three on the trip?”  
“Yeah, we all chipped in to win this competition. It it weren’t for Pidge’s advanced tech skills, we probably wouldn’t have won.”  
“She must be pretty smart, then.”  
“Smart is just scratching the surface. She’s the top of her class at MIT.”  
Keith let out a small whistle. “That’s insane.”  
“Not for her.”

Lance turned to the right, leaving Keith to follow him from behind. Lance led him to a set of blue buildings, eached lined with white trimming and fencing around the second floor. Small lights poking out of the ground lit a small area of the pathway so it would be visible in the dim light of the night. Lance turned into a small corridor and stopped at the corner of the building. He knocked just as Keith had stopped just shy of the window.

The door opened, and a stream of yellow light poured onto Lance’s face. The smile that appeared on Lance seemed to make the glow on his skin even brighter. 

“Hey guys,” Lance greeted.  
“Yo bro!” A masculine voice who Keith assumed to be Hunk yelled. “How was your day?”  
“And where’s that guy you were arguing with at Splash Mountain?” A more female voice piped up.  
Keith took this as his cue to leave. Just as he turned to leave, a force wrapped itself around his arm and yanked him into the light of Lance’s room. When Keith was finally still, he saw that Lance was the one who had grabbed his arm.  
“He’s right here, just being anti-social.”

Keith looked at the two figures in the doorway. The first one towered over the other and was definitely more buff. He had fairly dark skin and matching shades of hair and eyes. The man wore a tangerine orange headband wrapped around his forehead and sported a white pajama set with yellow details around his neckline and the cuffs of his pants. 

The other was significantly shorter and skinnier. Her skin was almost as pale as Keith’s, and had a short bob cut of her caramel hair. Her brown eyes complimented the green in her shirt, which simply said “Don’t mess with me when I’m tired.” Keith took that as a sign to not ever disturb her when she was getting her beauty rest.

“Keith, this is Hunk and Pidge. Hunk and Pidge, Keith.” Lance made quick introductions with a small swing of his arm between the three of them.  
Hunk gave Keith a gentle smile. “Nice to finally meet you.”  
Pidge, on the other hand, looked Keith over for a moment or so. When she met his eyes, she was smirking. Her smirk made Keith slightly unsettled as well as confused. “So what did Lance have you two do? Did he drag you around on a personal tour of the park?”  
“Not really,” Keith answered. “We walked around Tomorrowland for a while. I won the race at the speedway-”  
“But I won at Buzz Lightyear, which is the superior ride,” Lance interjected.   
Keith simply rolled his eyes before continuing. “Anyway, then we went on Space Mountain and helped get over his fear.”  
Lance scoffed and stepped away so he was standing next to Pidge with his arms crossed. “Nope. Don’t remember that.”  
Keith’s eyebrows furrowed. “Uh yes you do. We had a bonding moment. I stopped you from jumping off the ride!”  
All Lance did was shake his head. “Don’t remember. It didn’t happen.” He didn’t even take a small second to see if he even did remember it. His ignorance was enough to make Keith groan.   
“You know what? Forget it. Hunk, Pidge, it was nice meeting the both of you.” Keith gave the trio a small wave before he turned on his heel and followed the path back to the lake. 

Keith couldn’t get Lance’s words out of his head. What was Lance’s problem? Was he embarrassed to be around him and just hiding it the whole time? If that were the case, it wouldn’t be the first time that it happened. But this time was different. Keith actually had a great time today, but Lance’s response had just ruined all of that. The anger in his head mixed with the small part of pain from Lance’s ignorance. 

Keith eventually found himself at the miniature beach next to the lake. He didn’t bother taking off his shoes before stepping into the sand and trudging to a wooden beach recliner. As he walked, he felt grains of sand slipping in the tiny gap between his jeans and his high top Converse. That would be a problem for when he got back to his room. Right now, he needed to cool off before going back to Shiro and Allura. 

The few moments he had to himself reminded him of the nights he had spent on his roof to avoid his problems in his house. The sky and the wind were his only friends, explaining his profound love for space. It was the only place where he felt comfortable. The faint memory surfaced enough to remove the worries about Lance from his head.

That is, until he heard his name being called from behind him. Keith didn’t need to look to know who that voice belonged to. He heard footsteps approaching, then the sound of sand flying with a tiny hiss. 

“Keith, can we talk about this?” Lance asked the back of the chair.  
“What is there to talk about?” Keith retaliated as he refused to move from his chair. “You completely ignored the whole Space Mountain thing, making me look like a fool in front of your friends.”  
Lance let out a small sign. “It’s not that.”  
“Really?” Keith pushed off of the arm rests and stood to face Lance. “Cause it sure seemed like that was your intention.”  
“Can you please listen to me?” Lance suddenly yelled, causing Keith to cross his arms in response. “The reason I said what I did is because they don’t know about my fear of Space Mountain.”  
Keith gave a small roll of his eyes. “You can’t be serious.”  
“I’m as serious as I’ve ever been.” Keith looked up at Lance and was shocked by his facial expression. It wasn’t like earlier, where he was completely unguarded. Instead, it was like Lance was… ashamed. His frown was something that even his smile couldn’t combat. His shoulders were drooped, and his hands resting over each other at the middle of his body.  
Keith’s arms slowly dropped to his sides. “Okay,” he simply said. “I believe you. But why haven’t you told them?”  
Lance shrugged. “I guess I’m just scared of them seeing me differently. And, not going to lie, my fear is kind of dumb.”   
That was enough to draw a small chuckle out of Keith. He realized too late that he might have hurt Lance, but he heard Lance laughing too, and he knew it was okay.  
“But yeah,” Lance continued, “that wasn’t the right thing for me to do, especially after you helped me conquer Space Mountain.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I at least owe you a thank you.”  
“Hey, don’t worry about it.”  
Lance smiled softly before dropping his hand to his pocket. “You said you’re going to be here for the rest of the week, right?”  
“Yeah?” Keith asked with a raised eyebrow.  
Lance pulled his phone out of his pocket and walked over to Keith. “Today was pretty fun. And I want to see if I can beat you on any more rides. So if you want to take my challenge, here’s my number. Unless you’re scared I’ll beat you like I did in Buzz Lightyear.”  
Keith snatched his phone. “In your dreams, Lance.” He opened up his texting app and entered his number into Lance’s phone. “Just message me so I know it’s you.”  
“I will.” He handed Lance back his phone and stuffed it in his pocket. Lance opened his mouth as if to speak up, but a loud boom from behind Keith silenced any sound that might have out of it. 

Keith jumped, and whirled around to see what it was that had caused the sound. His body was relieved of its tension when he discovered that the source of the sound was actually fireworks that shot out from beyond the tree line of the resort. 

“I didn’t think that the Caribbean Beach held a fireworks show,” Keith wondered aloud as his eyes watched the fireworks fizzle into smoke.   
“They don’t.” Lance chuckled. “Those are from the fireworks show at Epcot. It’s far enough away that you can’t see the ball, but just close enough that you can see the fireworks.”  
“You think the builders planned that?”  
“Probably not, but it’s a great added feature to the hotel stay.”

Keith couldn’t help but smile as he watched the fireworks with Lance. Now that their fight had been resolved, it seemed like it happened ages ago. Lance was an addition to this vacation that Keith never expected, but it was a pleasant one at that. Who knows? Maybe this addition is just what his vacation would need.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm so sorry this chapter is so late! It's been insane at school, especially with the 5 AP classes I'm taking. Anyway, this chapter is way longer than the others, but it's worth the long wait. Enjoy!


	6. Tower of Teases

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “This door is the key to your imagination,” said a voice of unknown origin. “Beyond it is another dimension… a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You’re moving into a land of shadow and substance. You’ve just crossed over into… the Twilight Zone.”
> 
> “Scared, yet?” Lance whispered to Keith.
> 
> “As if,” Keith scoffed back.

“Hunk, I am your father.”  
“No! It can’t be true!”  
“Alas, it is.”  
“No, seriously dude, that’s really creepy.” Hunk slapped Lance’s hand away as he went in for a choking move with the Force Lance thought he had.   
Lance pouted. “Come on, buddy! We’re at a Star wars parade and you’re not letting me bring out my inner Darth Vader? What kind of fun is that?” The Cuban boy swept his arm over the crown that swarmed the main road of Hollywood Studios.   
“Well, for starters,” Pidge piped up in between them, “You definitely don’t fit the Darth Vader persona.”  
“I am hurt!” Lance crossed his hands over his heart. “I so do!”  
“Really? How?”  
“I’m also interested in seeing how you see yourself as Darth Vader,” Hunk pitched in, turning his body carefully in the packed crowd.   
“First, and most importantly, I’m just as attractive as Anakin was before he was turned into Darth Vader,” Lance started. He smirked his traditional smirk and ran a hand through his dark hair. Of course, that dark hair didn’t help at all with fighting off the blaring heat of Orlando.   
“But Anakin would at least be willing to give up his looks if it meant getting to the Dark Side,” Pidge replied.  
With that, Lance’s smirk dropped faster than the elevator in the Tower of Terror. “I-I would do that, too!”  
“Tell that to the hundreds of care products you brought with you on this trip.”  
“Don’t you dare insult my babies!” Lance poked his index finger into Pidge’s chest.   
“My point exactly.” Pidge smirked in her victory.  
Lance let his finger fall as he examines Pidge. “Okay, fine. You win that round.”  
“I know.” Pidge pushed the rim of her glasses up her nose. “So any other reasons as to why you see yourself as the most legendary villain in all of cinematic history?”  
“I also have an irresistible charm that draws all kinds of people towards me, like Darth Vader with his motives.”   
Pidge pursed her lips in thought. “Have any objections to that statement, Hunk?”  
Hunk rubbed his chin and shook his head. “None on my end.”  
“Alright. This point goes to you, Lance.”  
Lance pumped his fist in victory. “Yes! I still think you should have given the last one to me, but it’s whatever.”  
“Okay, what’s your final point?”

As Lance went to open his mouth, a fanfare of trumpets in a march anthem played over the loudspeakers of Hollywood Boulevard. It was enough to almost silence the crowd, but not enough to eliminate their anticipation, which only grew with the music.

A man with a staticy voice spoke as the music faded, announcing the appearance of characters that got lost to the excited sounds of thousands of guests.   
“Imminent containment of the southern doors, covering the havoc in units 753 of the Phi-liners,” it started, as if it was conveying important information to a special security unit. “Warning in Quadrant 52589. Prepare to embark.”

The sound of an engine roaring rose from a small presence to a large uproar, as a countdown and call-offs for departure sounded overhead. All of it cut off as a solid march picked up on the speakers. Lance and the crew looked up and down the street, unsure if anyone would be making an appearance. Suddenly, Hunk nudged his two friends and pointed to the end of Hollywood Boulevard, towards the entrance to the park. Blocking the center of the street was a hoard of Stormtroopers, with their white armor blazing in the harsh light of a Florida summer. Leading the group was a single soldier in a tainted silver armor. The soldier had a coal black cape laced with a blood red trim and it hung around its shoulders. Each Stormtrooper held a gun with ferocious rigidity, almost as if they were ready to fire at any moment.

“Whoa…,” Lance mustered out as he watched them with attentive eyes. “I want armor like that.”  
“I want Captain Phasma’s armor,” Pidge spoke up as she pointed at the silver armor.   
“You wouldn’t even fit in it.” Lance laughed, but he was cut off when Pidge slapped his arm hard. “Hey!”  
“I couldn’t even imagine walking in that armor today,” Hunk piped up as he used the bottom of his tank top to wipe his forehead. “It’s like the inside of an oven out here.”  
“Tell me about it.” Lance pulled a small electronic fan out of his pocket and attached it to the charger port of his iPhone. He flipped a small switch and its blades started spinning, sending a small cool front in his direction. 

As the Stormtroopers neared the group, Captain Phasma raised her blaster in her right hand and her left hand coiled into a fist. Her legs spread at about shoulder-length as she came to a halt.  
“Stop,” she commanded, causing the other troopers to immediately halt their marching behind her.   
Captain Phasma moved from her position and walked in a circle, surveying the crowd. Her blaster was still raised high, a threat to anyone who steps out of line. She stopped her parole as she faced the Stormtroopers.  
“Eyes and ears on me,” she directed with a simple nod of her head. “And we’re going to be keeping an eye on you.”

With that, the Stormtroopers broke from their tight formation and dispersed among the edges of the crowd that gathered on the sidewalk. One of them ended up right in front of Lance and his friends. Lance’s body went rigid in the presence of the Stormtrooper, and he could hear a faint whimper from Hunk nearby. However, the Stormtrooper’s eyes landed on Pidge, who refused to move her eyes from the trooper’s stoic gaze. Lance gulped as he watched the silent showdown between his friend and the intergalactic soldier. Eventually, the Stormtrooper moved on to his next victim, causing Hunk to release a long-held breath. 

“If you withhold information regarding the Resistance, you will be considered a traitor,” Phasma threatened. “And a target.”

The threat alone sent chills down Lance’s spine. He had never seen a performance so well done yet so frightening at the same time. The mere presence of the Stormtroopers was enough to make him want to submit to the Empire, even though it was completely against his morals. Although, he didn’t doubt for a fact that Pidge would. 

Phasma yelled for the Stormtroopers to get to attention, and they all moved back to the center of the street. “We’ll meet again,” she told a kid on the other side of the street before heading back to her position at the head of the group. She motioned forward and yelled “Advance.”

The army of Stormtroopers began a standing march, and eventually proceeded to the center of the park once Phasma lowered her blaster back into her hands. 

“That was awesome!” Lance finally exclaimed once the Stormtroopers have passed and the crowd around them started to disperse.   
“Right?!” Hunk exclaimed, a grin spreading on his face. “Those black eyes felt like they were staring into my soul.” He shivered at the mere thought of it. “How did you not flinch when he looked at you, Pidge?”  
“Let’s just say I don’t have a soul he can look at.” Pidge gave a sly smirk before heading off to the other side of the road. 

Lance gave Hunk a confusing look and Hunk simply shrugged. They both knew not to question the shifty motifs of their friend. They quickly pushed through the crowd to catch back up with Pidge.   
Hollywood Studios wasn’t always Lance’s favorite park growing up. It had so many thrill rides that he yearned to go on. He tried to run into the line of Rock n’ Roller Coaster once. He went so far ahead of his parents that they lost good sight of him. However, the Cast Member at the start of the ride stopped him before he could sneak in. They told him that he was too below the height requirement to go in.

Nevertheless, as Lance got older, he had the privilege to ride the coaster as many times as he wanted. That is, until he threw up during the ride and his vomit became another guest’s new attire for the rest of the day. His mama had never scolded him so hard, and his abuelita never laughed any harder. 

Lance hopped onto the curb and found Hunk and Pidge underneath a tree. Pidge sat on the bench and was messing around on her phone. Hunk leaned against the back of the bench and drank out of his oversized water bottle.

“So it looks like that Star Tours has a fairly short wait,” Pidge announced as she scrolled down on her phone. Lance glanced over her shoulder and saw that she was on the My Disney Experience app, the latest tech to Disney that Pidge became obsessed with the moment they walked into the park.   
“That’s the simulator ride, right?” Lance asked.  
“Yeah. The experience changes every time, so you get a different mission on every ride.”  
Hunk swallowed his water and tucked it into the pocket of his backpack. “I was actually thinking we could do the MuppetVision 3D or maybe see Chewbacca,” he suggested.  
“MuppetVision is lame, from what I’ve heard,” Pidge said as she tucked her phone back in her pocket. “Plus, we don’t really have to see Chewbacca.”  
Hunk gasped and clutched his hand to his heart. “How dare you say that! Chewie is the most iconic Star Wars character.”  
“I don’t really like him. I prefer R2-D2.”  
“One, how can you prefer a droid over a fluffy, lovable beast? And second, you know how I feel about simulations. Do we need to bring up the trip to the museum when they had that spaceship simulator?”

Lance rolled his eyes and walked away from the group. Again with the bickering. What was it going to take to make it stop? Instead of even trying to intervene again, because he knew it would be no help, he strolled over to the nearest snack vendor. He got in line and scanned over the choices on a simple plastic sign. The snacks ranged from Mickey ice cream sandwiches to an Olaf themed strawberry lemonade popsicle. As delicious and fatty as they sounded, they didn’t quite fit Lance’s cravings.

Then his eyes caught sight of the picture of a long, skinny churro on the board. His mouth started salivating at the thought of eating a churro. His abuelita made them all the time when he was young. The recipe had been passed down in their Cuban family for generations, but Abuelita made it her own when she added her homemade chocolate drizzle over the churros. Whenever there was a big family gathering, she would make them. Of course, they would be gone minutes after they were put on the table, but Lance always savored his to the last bite. 

Once the lady in front of Lance walked away with her order, Lance stepped up.

“Hi, what can I get you?” The Cast Member asked with a smile.  
“One churro, please,” Lance told him.  
The Cast Member nodded and moved to a small container with a heat lamp. She used white wax paper with purple Mickeys to grab a churro out and handed it to Lance.   
“Are you on the Dining Plan?” She asked.  
“Yeah.”  
“Then just touch your band to the pad and enter your pin.” She motioned to the pad to his right, which had a large circle with a Mickey on it. 

As he twisted his wrist to touch the mickey on his band to that on the pad, his phone started to buzz in his back pocket. Lance entered the pin into the keypad, then pulled out his phone. Who would be calling him? Did Hunk and Pidge finally make up and have the decency to see where he was?

Turns out the answer was no. The top of the screen read “Mullet” with a matching emoji with a guy getting a haircut. Keith had entered his name when they exchanged numbers, but Lance changed it to something more suiting. 

“Hello?” He asked into the phone.   
“Is this Lance?” Keith’s uncertain voice spoke from the other side of the phone.   
“Uh yeah. Who else would have a voice like this?” He smirked as the Cast Member handed him his receipt, followed by wishing him a magical day. Lance pulled away from the phone to wish him the same before he walked away.  
“I don’t know. Your twin or something?”  
Lance let out a short laugh. “Even if I did have a twin, which I don’t, he wouldn’t sound as handsome as I do.” He could feel Keith roll his eyes as he took a bite of his churro.  
“I didn’t call you to talk about your voice, Lance.”  
“Oh?” Lance quickly swallowed his bite. “Then why are you calling?”  
“I wanted to know if you were free again today. To explore the parks, I mean.”

Lance took a moment to glance over at where he left his friends. Their fighting had subsided, but he could see in their faces how the fight had ended. Hunk and Pidge were back to their normal friendly banter, as if the fight hadn’t even happened. He hated seeing his friends on and off like this, but if he was with them when another fight broke out, he was pretty sure that he would finally reach his breaking point. Pidge and Hunk never had seen him like that, but even Lance had to admit that he was scary. It’s that part of him that worries him that he’ll lose their friendship if he does flip his lid. That’s why he keeps all of his real emotions hidden; his own emotional damage is worth more than losing those closest to him.

“Lance?” Keith’s voice broke him out of his small trance. “You there?”   
The Cuban blinked. “Yeah, sorry. I was finishing my churro.”   
“So are you free or not?”  
“You’re lucky, Mullet. I just happen to be available for the time being.”   
“Good. Where are you?”  
“At Hollywood Stu-”  
“Great, I’ll be there in 20 minutes,” Keith interrupted, causing Lance to raise an eyebrow. “Where can we meet?”  
“I’ll meet you at Echo Lake. There’s a dinosaur there, you can’t miss it.” He paused for a moment. “Say, aren’t you hanging out with your group?”  
“See you then,” Keith simply said before ending the call. Lance didn’t even get the chance to say goodbye. How rude of him.  
Lance tucked his phone back in his pocket and walked back to the duo at the bench.   
“So that’s where you went,” Pidge said with a smile. She suddenly perked up when he returned.   
“What can I say?” Lance said as he pointed his churro at Pidge. “A man has to eat when a man has to eat.” He brought the churro back to him and took a big bite out of it.   
“Amen to that,” Hunk piped up as he pulled a granola bar out of his bag.  
“So Hunk and I talked about what we could do.” Pidge motioned between the two of them. “We’ll hit the Launch Bay to bask in the glory of Star Wars, then you and I will go hit Star Tours while Hunk checks out the gift shop.”  
Lance winced slightly. “About that…”  
Pidge raised her eyebrow. “Why? What’s wrong?”  
“You guys remember Keith from yesterday?”  
“Yeah, the guy who said that you two had a bonding moment, right?” Hunk asked with a small wave of his half-eaten granola bar.   
“That’s him. Well, he called me while I was at the stand. He wants to know if I wanted to meet up. And I said yes.” Lance rubbed the back of his neck, fearful of what they might say.  
“Oh, that’s fine, man.” Hunk was the first to speak up.  
“You’re still gonna meet up with us for dinner, right?” Pidge asked with a raised eyebrow.   
“Yeah, man! You seriously think I’m gonna miss out on going to the Rainforest Cafe?”  
“I can’t wait to see all of the animatronics!” The Samoan exclaimed. “It’s gonna be like we’re in an actual rainforest!”  
“That’s the point, Hunk.” Lance chuckled as he chucked the last bit of his churro into his mouth. “I’ll just meet you guys there at the reservation time.”  
“Sounds like a plan.” Pidge pushed off of the bench and stretched upward.   
“Alright. I’ll catch you guys later.” He grinned and walked off in the direction of the lake, but stopped. “By the way, Hunk, Star Tours isn’t that bad. You won’t get sick. I promise.” His smile softened to comfort his friend before continuing his stroll to the arranged meeting point.

As he weaved through the countless crowds on Hollywood Boulevard, Lance thought back to the call between him and Keith. Something seemed off about it. All Lance had done was ask about the group he was with on Splash Mountain, but Keith had cut him off. He seemed rushed, panicky even. Was Keith avoiding talking about it?

Nah, he wouldn’t do that, Lance decided. Keith is the kind of guy that speaks out if anything is on his mind. He kept picking at Lance’s childish beliefs, which weren’t childish in the slightest, and always found a way to press Lance’s buttons. Lance never met anyone like Keith before, and although his rash tendencies could be annoying at times, it kept Lance on his toes, something he never had to do with Pidge and Hunk.

Lance neared the lake and found a tall, standing table that he could use until Keith appeared. He leaned his elbows on the top of the table and resulted to scrolling aimlessly through Instagram. After a few minutes of photos of friends traveling to exotic destinations, Lance decided to switch to Snapchat. He had to keep up his streaks, even on vacation. How else would his friends remember that he was here? He stretched his phone towards the lake and took an angled photo on Snapchat of the lake that captured the glistening diamonds of sunlight that sparkled on the surface. With the click of the plus icon and the small arrow on his screen, the photo sent to not only his twenty streaks, but also to his story. Now everyone would know of the great time he was having, even if it was a little, as the kids say, “extra.” Extra was Lance’s middle name, and he would live up to it.

“Are you seriously sending out Snapchats?” An annoyed voice sounded from behind Lance’s back. It didn’t take half a brain for Lance to determine who the owner of the voice was.   
“How else will I keep my streaks?” Lance shot back as he turned away from the lake to see Keith standing in front of him.   
Keith was sporting a black muscle shirt and matching black skinny jeans with small tears in the fabric. Attached through the loop of his belt line was a black Snapback hat with a red rim. A red lion was outlined on the front of the hat. All Lance could think about was how Keith was even alive in this outfit.  
“Why do you even have streaks in the first place?” Keith asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest.   
“So I can keep up with my friends’ lives, duh,” Lance scoffed in reply.  
“You do realize that streaks are just materialistic objects that have no actual meaning except to boost your self-esteem and to make you appear more popular than you actually are, right?”  
Lance was stunned into silence. How did that combination of words just come out of his mouth? After a few short seconds of recovering, Lance laughed. “Oh, Keith. Streaks are much more than that.”  
Keith raised his eyebrow. “Really?”   
“Yes. They are signs of affection-”  
“That are just photos that have no words except for the word ‘streak’ on a black bar,” Keith interrupted with a smirk on his pale face.  
“You like taking the fun out of everything, don’t you?” Lance asked with a small pout.  
“It’s a pastime.”   
“Whatever makes you sleep at night, Mullet.” Lance pushed off of the table and stood with his hand resting on his hip. “So what do you want to do?”  
After a small moment, Keith shrugged. “I don’t know. What is there to do?”  
“Well, you got the best music-themed roller coaster of   
time-”  
“Wait. Music themed?”  
“Yeah! Rock n’ Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith, baby!” Lance backed away from the table and started his own air guitar solo, consisting of several swings of the arm and headbangs that totally didn’t make him dizzy when he stood upright.   
“Did you really have to do that?”  
“Yes. How else was I supposed to show you what to expect?” Lance wore a shit-eating grin.  
“You literally showed me nothing about this ride.”  
Lance gasped in mock offense. “Yes I did! I showed you just a small part of the pure awesomeness that you’ll experience.”  
Keith rolled his eyes. “Whatever you say, Lance. Now are you going to show me this roller coaster or not?”  
“If Your Mulletness requests it, then it shall be so.” The Cuban did a mock bow then motioned for Keith to follow him.

The two boys crossed through the main street and made a slight right turn into the ever-famous Sunset Boulevard, home to the biggest thrill rides in the park and, as some would argue, the biggest in the Disney Resort. As they curved into the area, a brown building towered over the back part of the street. Four narrow needles rested at the corners of the pinnacle, and in the center stood a cathedral like dome. On the face of the building, surrounded by faint black scorch marks, was a sign that identified it as the Hollywood Tower Hotel. 

“I didn’t realize that there was a hotel directly in the parks,” Keith remarked as Lance saw him remove his hat from his belt and slip it onto his head.   
“Oh, that isn’t a hotel,” Lance replied with a small chuckle.  
“But it says it is.” Keith waved his hand at the building ahead of them.  
“It’s not the kind of hotel that people stay at. Well, it was.”  
“What do you mean ‘was?’ Did something happen?”  
“There was a stormy night decades ago,” Lance started, dropping his voice to a mysterious low. “Some guests entered the elevator of the hotel, but fate had another plan for them. A lightning bolt struck the tower, and sent those in the elevator to the Twilight Zone.” Just as he finished his tale, countless screams echoed across the park from the Hollywood Tower. “Now, their ghosts haunt the hotel and the elevator they died on, and they call it the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror.”  
Lance could see the Adam’s Apple in Keith’s throat bob a little as he gulped. “God… that’s insane.”  
“Only the bravest can go on and make it out alive.” Suddenly, an idea popped into Lance’s head, causing a devilish smirk to appear on his face. “We could go in, unless you’re scared.”  
Keith’s head whipped to face him, the slightest look of fear in his eyes replaced by determination. “Who said I was scared?”   
“No one.”  
“Well I’m definitely not scared.”  
“Really? Cause you look like a chicken to me.”  
“I’m not a chicken.”  
Lance started to bawk like a chicken. He folded his hands into his armpits and waved his arms like wings.  
Keith groaned. “Enough! I am not a chicken, and I’ll prove it to you.”  
It was then that Lance removed himself from his mocking position and grinned. “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go!” He grabbed Keith’s arm and bolted for the Tower of Terror.  
“Do you do this with all of your friends?” Keith yelled over the crowd.  
“Nah! Hunk gets too motion sick for this kind of stuff, and Pidge always wants to go on extreme rides, so I don’t need to coax her.”

Lance could practically hear Keith rolling his eyes behind him. The Cuban, as much as he missed his friends, was glad that he was finally with someone who wouldn’t argue with him about where to go. Keith was the guy who sort of went with the flow of things, and just accepted whatever was happening around him. Then again, this is the Keith he’s come to know. Who knew how he acted around his own friends. They were probably as mysterious as he was. 

Lance dragged Keith with him as they got into line. They passed under a black Gothic sign that said “Welcome” in delicate lettering. From there, they started moving through a winding line that led them into the lobby of the abandoned hotel. A crystalline chandelier hung from the raised ceiling with silver strands of cobwebs covering up most of its former beauty. A crow perched on a centerpiece on the main table, watching the guests enter with beady eyes. Lance couldn’t help but shudder as he entered. They were stopped in line as guests in the Fastpass line were ushered through.

“So I told you why I was here,” Lance perked up, hoping that some mild chit chat would pass the time. “Why are you here with your friends?”  
“Me?” Keith asked as he took off his hat and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. “My brother won a competition on a radio station.”  
“What’s with people having contests to win Disney trips on the radio?” Lance asked, remembering how he had been able to come to Disney in the first place.   
“I don’t know. But ours wasn’t a call-in like yours. The station had five clues that they announced at different times of the day. Only when we found all five were we able to enter the contest. My brother and I pulled all-nighters so we could fill out the slips to even be considered as a winner.”  
Lance whistled. “I’d do the same thing. If it means not paying four thousand dollars for a vacation, sign me up!”  
Keith unhooked the back of his hat and slid the one end into his belt loop. “It saved us money, but cost us sleep.” He sighed. “Honestly, I don’t think Shiro wanted to win for the two of us to go.”  
“What do you mean?” Lance asked with a raised eyebrow as he leaned against the chain wire that kept them in line.   
“Shiro, my brother, has a girlfriend,” Keith explained, glancing down at the floor. “She’s like a princess in every way, and sometimes I think he spoils her.” He chuckled at the thought. “Now that she’s here with us, though, it’s like he’s forgetting all about me. They’re living out this perfect idea of a Disney couple. Hell, they even have the matching Mickey ears!”  
Lance gasped. “Matching ears?! How cute!” Keith shot him a quick warning look and Lance’s amusement faded. “Sorry. But from what I’m hearing, I don’t think your brother meant to do it on purpose.”  
“What makes you say that?”   
“Well… he asked you to stay up late to finish those entries, right? That sounds like something good brothers would do with one another.” A hint of a smile appeared on Lance’s face. “My brothers and I used to stay up constantly to watch movies we weren’t allowed to watch. We knew the consequences, but it was worth it. Yeah, we fought, but it was times like that that strengthened our relationship with one another. You and Shiro sound really close, and I don’t think he would isolate you on purpose like that. Maybe you should try talking it out with him, tell him how you really feel.”

Keith glanced up at Lance with a look that Lance had never seen on Keith before. It was one of surprise, yet it wasn’t that; it was something more, like a faint appreciation that couldn’t be expressed. It was like wanting to thank someone, but unsure on how to go about it. His mouth was agape, waiting for the right words to fly inside. Lance sensed the hesitation on his lips, as if they were fumbling for a response. He wondered why Keith was delaying in his response. If Keith had told him this, Lance would have replied immediately; yet Keith didn’t. 

Finally, Keith’s mouth thinned into a small line, then a gentle smile. “I’ll try,” he said.

Oh well. Guess that’s the kind of thank you that you can expect from Keith. It won’t be said, but it’s implied.

Ahead of them, the Cast Member removed the chain at the front of the line and directed the guests to the far left set of doors. Lance pushed off of the chains and started to walk with the flow of the line. Before long the wooden doors swung open, leading the group into a library study. Lamps of stained glass and trinkets of all kinds littered the room. In the back left-hand corner was a television that should have stayed in the 1970s. 

The attendant yelled for everyone to move in to make more room. Now Lance was a comfortable guy, and appreciated the company of others. But when it resulted in Keith being pushed directly next to him, then things changed. Lance suddenly felt himself tense up and his and Keith’s arms were pressed up against each other.

“Sorry,” Keith muttered in apology. 

Just then, the lights in the room dimmed into a dark nothingness. The screen on the TV flickered to life, revealing a white door and a polka dot background, as if the door was floating in space. The TV must have been old, Lance determined, since the images were only in black and white. 

“This door is the key to your imagination,” said a voice of unknown origin. “Beyond it is another dimension… a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You’re moving into a land of shadow and substance. You’ve just crossed over into… the Twilight Zone.”  
“Scared, yet?” Lance whispered to Keith.  
“As if,” Keith scoffed back.

The image of space faded into a vision of the hotel that they were currently standing in. The windows were filled with a white light and streaks of heavy rain blurred the view as a storm roared above. 

“Hollywood, 1939,” The narrator continued. “Amid the glitz of the glitter and the bustling of a movie town in Hollywood’s golden age. The Hollywood Tower Hotel was a star in its own way, a hub for show business.” 

On screen, a glamorous couple, followed by a bellboy, a grandmother, and a small child, all filed into an old fashioned elevator. As the doors close, the narrator spoke. 

“Now, something is about to happen that will change all of that.”

The screen suddenly changed focus to the outside of the hotel. Two attached towers poked out from the front of the hotel. As if by fate, jagged bolts of lightning struck the two towers, sending shockwaves throughout the building. Lance could hear Keith gasp beside him, even though Lance had told him the story earlier. Before long, the towers started to fade out of existence until there was nothing left to verify their existence. The shot quickly shifted to the guests inside the elevator. The electricity traveled through the elevator and through their body, jolting them with enough volts to kill a human. They, too, faded into nothingness. 

Back outside the hotel, a ghost of an elevator on the far left of the hotel dropped until it vanished. All that was left of the hotel was the main structure and a charred black spot where the elevators used to be. The TV switched to the semicircle above the elevator that told guests what floor the elevator was on. 

“The time is now,” said the narrator. “On an evening very much like the night you just witnessed. Tonight’s story on the Twilight Zone is somewhat unique, and calls for a different kind of introduction.”

The narrator appeared in a typical black and white suit with tie. He stood in front of one of the elevators of the hotel, which had an “Out of Order” sign standing next to it. Out of order was a massive understatement. 

“This, as you may recognize, is a maintenance service elevator, still in operation, waiting for you. We invite you, if you dare, to step aboard, because in tonight’s episode, you are the star.”

The elevator opened, revealing a holy white light, though holy is the last way Lance would describe it. The screen then revealed the hotel in yet another stormy setting. When flashes of lightning illuminated the setting, the faint outline of the destroyed elevator towers could be seen, as if haunting the guests with their story.

“This elevator travels directly to… the Twilight Zone.”

All of a sudden, the power cut out, leaving the TV black and empty of life. The lights in the room flickered on and off until finally stabilizing. Lance felt Keith jump beside him and Lance forced back a laugh.

“You good, Mullet?” Lance asked, covering his mouth.   
“Never better,” Keith answered as he rolled his shoulders back.   
“Then let’s get going.” He motioned to the door that had opened on the far right of the room.

As they pushed through the crowd, they finally funneled out into a basement-like setting, with concrete walls and metal tubes lining the lower half of the hallway. They turned left into an engine room, with the faint whirring of elevators echoing in the large space. To their right were the service elevators that were talked about in the video. 

“How are these elevators still functioning?” Keith asked. “They’re almost eighty years old!”  
“It’s because they’re powered by the energy in the Twilight Zone. Duh.”  
“Still! They should be scrapped.”  
Lance sighed. “Keith, just don’t question it.”  
“I’m gonna question it because my life's on the line!”  
“You’ll survive. It’s just a trip to the Twilight Zone. How bad can it be?” 

As they branched off to the right side of the line and neared the front, an engine sparked to life to the right of the elevator. Small sparks flew from the gates surrounding the machine, and a large black cord started to stretch towards the ceiling. 

“Last chance for you to back out, Keith,” Lance warned.   
“I told you I’m not backing out.” Keith’s dark eyebrows knitted underneath his mess of a mullet.   
“Alright.” 

They finally reached the end of the line and the Cast Member directed them to the middle row of numbers, with two people ahead of them. Just as the last people filed into the numbers aside of them, a voice spoke up behind them.

“Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the Hollywood Tower Hotel!” A girl Cast Member greeted as she walked to the middle of the open elevator. “In just a few moments your service elevator will be arriving. When it does, please remain on the number I have given you until your row is called. Your seatbelts are located on the left and will only move to the right. Place all luggage at your feet and hold onto anything or anyone. No lights or cameras in this dimension. Any questions?”  
Keith leaned forward, just behind Lance, to say something, but was quickly interrupted by the attendant, whose face had gone flat.   
“Good.” She walked away to a small electrical box next to the elevator and pressed a button.  
“She sure was joyful,” Keith muttered beside him.   
“Tell me about it. She must be dead or something.”  
“On the inside, probably.”  
Lance couldn’t help but snicker at that. “You’re right.”

Suddenly, a bright light shone onto the elevator from above. The floor counter glowed amber as the arrow slowly started to move from twelve to nothing. Only then did the doors open and the attendant told their row to walk to the back. The inside of the elevator consisted of three rows. The back row had seven seats, and the first two rows had four seats on the left hand side, an aisle, then the remaining three seats rested on the right hand side. 

The two ahead of them moved to the left-hand side, followed by Lance and Keith. As soon as they sat, Lance removed his backpack and made sure his feet were inside the straps. He then buckled himself in.

“These belts seal your fate,” Lance teased with a glance over at Keith.  
“Let’s just get this over with,” Keith muttered as his belt clicked into place. 

Lance’s small smirk dropped. Keith actually looked… scared? His eyes were downcast, avoiding even looking at Lance. A drop in gaze revealed that Keith’s gloved hands were trembling ever so slightly. It was hard to see in the dim lighting, but one look revealed how Keith was really feeling. A wave of regret was starting to wash through Lance. Maybe this was a bad idea, after all. 

Just as he was about to apologize, the attendant spoke up from the entrance to the elevator. 

“Alright everyone, pull on your yellow straps for me.” She made her way up the aisle to make sure everyone was doing so before heading back down to the entrance. “Arms up, ladies and gentlemen, arms up!” Lance and Keith rose their hands high to the sky, as did everyone else. “Alright, have a safe trip,” she joked before exiting the elevator shortly before the doors closed. 

The lights flickered, and the elevator lifted upwards towards their untimely fate. Lance saw Keith tightly gripping the small handrails at the base of the seat, his knuckles a starch white in the dim room. 

“Keith, are you sure you’re okay?” Lance asked with a softness in his voice that surprised even him.   
“I’m sure, Lance,” Keith answered coldly, his gaze focused forward and nowhere else.  
A voice from overhead spoke, interrupting any chances Lance had to console his friend. “You’re about to ascend into your very own episode of… the Twilight Zone.”

The elevator stopped and a set of doors opened to reveal a grand hallway, lit with wooden chandeliers and small lamps on the walls. Everything was bright yellow, welcoming the guests to a hotel lost to time. The cheery mood suddenly turned dark as thunder rumbled from outside the small window at the back of the hallway. The wall lamps flickered until five blue transparent figures appeared in the hallway. As they materialized, Lance immediately recognized them as the five guests from the elevator in the video. Their arms waved the guests down, becking them to join them in the realm of the unknown. Electricity surged in the air, so much that Lance felt the hairs on his arm stand on end. Then, as quickly as they appeared, they were gone.

As soon as the ghosts disappeared, the lights lowered to a sunset orange. However, it wasn’t long until the walls and hallway faded into a black abyss with white dots that reminisced stars. The inky darkness spread into the back of the hallway, until all that remained of the corridor was the window, which transformed into a small screen. The faint twinkling of high-pitched bells filled the tense atmosphere. Suddenly, the window shattered, causing Lance to jump, before the doors finally closed, and the elevator climbed even higher. 

It was then that the pride and excitement inside of Lance faltered and fear blossomed.

“One stormy night long ago, five people stepped into the door of an elevator and entered a nightmare. The doors are opening once again, and this time,” the doors opened one final time, revealing a metallic runway. “they’re opening for you.”

It was in this moment that Lance felt his heart drop. The elevator moved forward into the hallway, with crackling and fizzes happening all around them. The corridor soon became the Twilight Zone as darkness ensued, with the faint ticking of clocks heard in the distance.

“Keith,” Lance said with a faint quiver in his voice. “I’m sorry I brought you on this.”  
“Like you said,” Keith retorted, his voice suddenly soft and fragile as compared to earlier. “There’s no going back.”  
Lance swallowed his own pride as light focused into one pixelated spot ahead of them. In its place, a thin vertical white line spread into two and separated, indicating yet another door opening. This time, it was the door of their demise. 

In the silence of the darkness that Lance compared to Hell, a single voice echoed to remind them of their fate. 

“You are about to discover what life began in the dimension beyond your deepest, darkest corner of your imagination in the Tower of Terror.”

Lance’s hand instinctively reached for the handles next to him. His left thumb was smacked against Keith’s hand. Although his grip was tight, the sweat on his hands made it hard to hold. But Lance didn’t have much time to worry about it as the elevator plummeted into cataclysmic dominion. 

Screams burst from everyone’s throats, but no one’s was stronger than Lance’s. He’s been on this ride so often with his Tio, but he forgot how terrifying it was. His heart was rapidly firing against the skin of his chest as Lance, despite being buckled in, started to levitate from his seat. Lance’s bosom crashed back into the chair when the elevator rushed forward until a window that provided a horizon view of the park. It kept rising until the elevator stopped in place in front of a half-covered window. The top half had two clear lights on each corner, and the bottom revealed the landscape of Sunset and Hollywood Boulevards below them. 

Right there, so many things happened at once for Lance to process it.

First, there was a bright flash of light, which Lance assumed was the traditional photo that could be purchased at the end of the ride. Second, the elevator dropped once more from its static state, causing an uproar of panicked yells from the riders. 

The final, and more surprising event, was when something wrapped itself around Lance’s upper arm and elbow. It squeezed his skin tightly as the elevator kept fluctuating between falling and rising. Only when did light pour onto them was the culprit revealed. In the harsh light of a Florida midday, Lance caught Keith clinging onto his arm as if his life depended on it. Although it seemed that he was looking forward, his eyes were clenched shut. His raven locks hovered over his face.

It was in this moment that Lance realized how vulnerable Keith was. Sure, he acted all tough around others and acted like he was okay with everything. But deep down, he was scared. Scared of how others thought of him. Scared of being seen as anything but strong. Scared of being his real self. And in that moment, Lance felt like he understood Keith.

Keith put on a show to not let people see what he thought was weakness. It was never a weakness, though. It is just Keith being human, and nothing more. And when those “weaknesses” are exposed, it causes the cracks to expand and grow into insecurities and pain and anxiety and emotional turmoil. It hurts - no, it more than hurts - it stings, like lemon juice in a fresh cut. It digs into you until there’s nothing left except a shell that tries to meet the expectations of the world. 

The elevator came to a long stop, and Lance was brought out of his train of thought. Keith opened one of his eyes and Lance quickly looked away. The last thing he needed was Keith teasing him about his overt staring. The Cuban moved his head to look at the screen ahead of them, which now had a black and white spiral on it. As it shrunk in size, Lance felt the elevator move backwards behind him. The last thing he caught a glimpse of was the five original victims of the elevator waving them goodbye before a black set of doors closed in front of them. 

“Welcome back, to those of you who’ve made it,” said the narrator. “A word of warning, something you won’t find in any guide book. The next time you check into a deserted hotel on the dark side of Hollywood, make sure you know just what kind of vacancy, or you may find yourself a permanent resident of… the Twilight Zone.”

The exit doors opened in front of them, and the riders rushed to exit. When Lance stood, his legs felt like week-old jello in his Abuelita’s refrigerator. Even though the ride had ended long ago, Lance still felt the fear’s impact on his body. Him and Keith exited the haunting elevator and followed the path to the ride’s gift shop.

“So what did you think?” Lance finally asked, some caution in his voice.  
All Keith did was shrug his shoulders. “It wasn’t that bad.”  
Lance’s jaw dropped. “Wasn’t that bad?! It was terrifying!”  
“I thought you said you loved this ride.” Keith gave him a questionable look.  
“Looking back on it, it seemed fun. Now I remember how wrong I was.” Lance shuddered at the mere memory.   
“I handled it fine.”

The two approached the counter where pictures from the ride could be purchased. People were crowding the desk, laughing at their own horrified looks just moments earlier. Lance spotted their photo quickly and smirked. Keith looked like a little kid clinging on his mom when he doesn’t want to leave a park. Lance’s face, on the other hand, looked like a distorted version of the Scream mask. 

Lance turned his head to make a joke on Keith’s appearance, but froze when he saw his face. Keith was staring at his shoes and his face was a brighter shade of red. Wait, was he blushing?  
He never saw Keith blush, but he assumed it was out of embarrassment more than flirtation. In a quick second, Lance swallowed his childish joke and cleared his throat.

“Hey, don’t worry about it.” Lance carefully placed his hand on Keith’s bare shoulder. “They did say hold on to anyone, right? You were just doing what was best for you.”  
Keith looked up with a small, almost inaudible, gasp at Lance. His look of dumbfoundedness slowly molded into the tiniest of smiles, which Lance assumed was the best that he could get out of Keith.   
“Still won’t stop me from saving that photo, though.” Lance smirked and quickly tapped his Magicband to the button underneath the photo. 

\---------------

“I don’t think I can ever look at a brownie the same way ever again,” Lance groaned as he threw open the door to his hotel room.  
“Really?” Hunk replied from behind with a large belch. “I’d be down for a round two.”  
“Same here.” Pidge sounded off as she closed the door behind her.   
Lance plopped down on his bed. “How you two can keep down that massive volcano dessert escapes me.”  
“I could ask you the same thing with that Mexicana burger that you got,” Pidge teased as she hung up her backpack.   
“Hey, it was delicious and tasted like home.”  
“That was probably the best meal I’ve had here. But nothing beats Mamma’s home cooking.” Hunk smiled in memory.   
“True that,” Pidge and Lance said in unison.   
“I’m gonna hit the bathroom real quick,” Hunk hurriedly said before rushing into the bathroom and shutting the door.

On his bed, Lance thought back to the time he spent earlier with Keith. Lance thought it was fun, overall, despite the fact that Keith chased Lance halfway through Hollywood Studios after he had saved the photo to his Magicband. Lance eventually promised to delete it, although he was pretty sure there was no way of doing that. Keith didn’t need to know that, though. 

A small smile appeared on his face without him knowing it. Being with Keith recently has really made this trip more adventurous than he originally thought. It also helped to remove the stress that Pidge’s and Hunk’s constant fighting has caused him. Maybe it was a good thing that he had met Keith.

“What has you smiling?” Pidge asked with a smirk.  
Lance blinked, snapping out of his spell. “Nothing,” Lance replied as he sat up.  
“Nothing doesn’t have you smiling like an idiot.” Pidge sat down next to Lance. “So what’s up?”  
“I… just thought about how happy I am that I’m here with you guys.”  
Pidge watched him with a cautious eye and shrugged. “Alright. Thought it was about someone else, but whatever.”  
“What?” Lance turned his head in surprise. “Who did you think it was?”  
“I could tell you,” Pidge hummed. “Or I couldn’t.”  
Lance groaned. “Pidge, tell me! I’ll be left in horrible suspense!”  
“In that case, I won’t.” She smirked her accursed smirk and pushed off of the bed.  
“Sometimes I wonder if you’re the Devil in disguise.”  
“I very well might be.”

A flush sounded from the bathroom and out came Hunk, but not in his usual day attire. Instead, he came out with swimming trunks. The top part were yellow, but the bottom was laced with blue outlined flowers and leaves with white insides. 

“Are those new?” Pidge asked.  
“Yeah, thanks for noticing!” Hunk grinned.   
Lance whistled. “Damn, Hunk. You trying to impress the ladies?”  
“Nah, they’d never go for a guy like me.”   
The Cuban gasped before standing up and walking over to his friend, draping his arm over his shoulders. “Hunk, you are a hunk. You have one of the best personalities ever, and you can cook! If girls don’t come flocking to you, they have no idea what they’re missing.”  
“Aww, Lance.” He pulled his friend into a tight hug, causing Lance to chuckle.   
“Love ya too, buddy.”  
“So why the swim trunks? You heading to the pool?” Pidge asked as she removed a Disney shopping bag from her backpack.  
“Yeah, why not? You guys want to come with?”  
“Of course!” Lance exclaimed as he pulled his swim trunks out of a drawer. “Plus, how else am I going to show off this bod to the ladies?”  
Pidge groaned. “Even on vacation, we can’t stop Lance’s flirting.”  
“I don’t think we ever will,” Hunk joked.

After a few minutes to get ready, the trio rushed to the Port Royale, where the biggest pool in the hotel waited for them. Palm trees lined the pool’s fence with their leaves swaying in the cool night breeze. Lights from underneath the surface illuminated the pool in a cerulean blue, transporting guests to the Caribbean. The joyful laughter of children could be heard in all parts of the pool. 

The trio managed to find three lounge chairs next to each other and laid their towels on them to claim the chairs as theirs. 

“Hey Hunk, do you want to head to the slide?” Pidge asked as she slid off her jean shorts to reveal her green one-piece with an open back.   
“You know I can’t pass up a good slide!” Hunk grinned as he tossed off his flip flops. “Lance, you want to come with?”  
“Nah, I’m going to hit up the hot tub,” Lance replied with his traditional grin. “The only place where I can find some hot ladies in a hot setting.”  
Pidge rolled her eyes. “You do you, Lance. Come on, Hunk!” She grabbed her friend’s arm and yanked him towards the large brick structure that held the slide. 

Lance chuckled at his friends and made his way to where the hot tubs were located. In his mind, he envisioned some fine ladies of all shapes and sizes. Blondes, brunettes, preferably with green eyes the shade of his mom’s emerald earrings. Hopefully the tub wouldn’t be the only thing that would be hot tonight. With thoughts of ladies dancing in his head, he turned the corner, hoping to see the hot tub brimming with available girls. 

Instead, what he saw caught him off guard.

“Keith?!” Lance yelled, stopping his place.

In front of him was Keith, the last person he was expecting. Although Keith was resting in the hot tub, no one else was. In fact, all of the hot tubs were taken by couples. Of course, except for the one where Keith was.

“What? Didn’t expect me to be here?” Keith asked, his arms resting on the edge of the tub.  
“Well…” Lance rubbed the back of his neck.  
A smirk appeared on Keith’s face. “That’s what I thought.”  
Lance laughed awkwardly. “Mind if I join you?”  
Keith waved his hand to the open water. “Go right ahead.”

The Cuban strode into the water and quickly waded over to the wall opposite of Keith. The heat from the water made the hair on the back of his skin stand on end as warmth and relaxation spread throughout his body. He smiled as he sunk more into the water until it was right at his chest. 

The water has always been his home. His family’s home back in Cuba was built next to the ocean, which came in handy when relatives came over to visit. After all, who doesn’t love the beach? Waking up to the pleasing smell of sea salt from outside his window and cafe con leche from the kitchen. Hearing the laughter of his little brothers and sisters as they ran around the house, fighting over someone else’s toy or whose turn it was to help Mama bake the tostada. Everyone rushing out to be the first one to hit the waves with their boogie boards. It was a time he missed dearly, and a time he sometimes wished he could go back to. 

He looked up at the night stars and felt as if he was among them. The way his body floated in the water mimicked how he would have felt if he were in space. Drifting among the stars as they were born and destroyed before his very eyes, and seeing the fabrics of the universe sew themselves together. The world he had known would be far behind him, and a whole new experience and existence would be his new life. 

Lance’s smile slowly shifted into something sadder. He would like to live that life, but his roots were back here on Earth. If he had to move away from home just to travel to a new, unexplored world, he wouldn’t be able to handle it. He’d miss the way the beach breeze tosses his hair and how it would eventually gave him his signature beach wave hair. He’d miss the way the rain would fall on his skin as he danced as if no one was watching. He’d miss the green fields, the food, and his family. It would break his heart. 

“Earth to Lance,” Keith called out, bringing Lance back down from his fantasy.   
“Sorry,” He said, looking at Keith from across the water. “I was just thinking about how you managed to survive the parks while you were wearing all black.”  
“What’s the problem with me wearing black?”  
“Well, besides the fact that it makes you look emo,” Lance stated. “It absorbs a lot of heat. And you were wearing jeans. Jeans, of all things!”  
“I happen to like my jeans.”  
“But it’s the middle of August!” Lance exclaimed with a wave of his arm.  
“Here’s something for your tiny brain to understand. Europeans wear long pants all the time in the summer. You’d never know that, though.” The corner of his lips pulled up into one of the cockiest smirks that Lance had ever seen. And that’s saying something, since Pidge was pretty much always cocky with her remarks.   
“Well this is America, mullet,” Lance shot back with a matching smirk. “And only those with death wishes wear black jeans in Florida.”  
“Whatever you think will make you right.” He rolled his eyes and moved to pull a black elastic band from his wrist. He pulled his hair from its draped position around his neck into a tight, short ponytail. 

Lance never saw someone with a mullet attempt a ponytail before, but on Keith, it looked surprisingly good. Keith’s hair still covered the upper part of his face, but it showed off his the lower half, which had some of the best structure that he had ever seen on a human. His jawline was sharp and angled, so sharp that he could probably cut an apple through to its core. With the light of the pool, Lance saw that his skin was so much paler than it was in the daytime. It made his dark eyes and hair stand out so much more. Wearing black did not do him justice. 

“What’s with the ponytail?” Lance asked. “Afraid that your mullet will get wet?”  
Keith wrapped the band one more time around his hair and tugged on the ends to pull it through all the way. “Yeah. I just got a shower.”  
“Do you do that often?”  
“You mean put my hair in a ponytail? Yeah.”  
“I can see why. Your mullet is hideous.”  
Keith lowered his arms to the ledge of the tub. “I don’t see why you’re so worried about my mullet.”  
“Because   
am a beauty expert. Everything involving facials, hair, and skin care, I know.”  
“So would it be bad to tell you that you have a pimple on your face?”   
Lance went into immediate panic mode. “What?! Where?” He felt all over his face, from the crevice of his nose to the edge of his hairline. He swore he was using his usual care treatment right. What if he missed a spot with his aloe face mask? Did he forget to apply his moisturizer in the morning? Now his goal to get ladies was ruined!

It wasn’t until Lance heard Keith’s laughter from across the hot tub that he knew it was a lie. He dropped his hands from his face and saw Keith bending over in laughter. His hand rested on his chest until his laughter died down.

“Okay, haha,” Lance mocked as he rolled his eyes. “Very funny, mullet.”  
“You should’ve seen your face.” He ran his wet hand through his hair as his laughter settled into a proud smile. The faintest of dimples cast crescent shadows on his face.   
“Oh shush.” Lance propped both of his hands behind his head. “I was only kidding. I do my routine perfectly every day.”  
“Your reaction just now says otherwise.”  
Lance simply huffed and closed his eyes. “Now you’re being ignored.”  
“Whatever, Lance.” Lance couldn’t see him, but he could hear the tug of a smile in his words. 

Why did Keith find so much amusement in messing with him? Is it because of how Lance is practically superior to him in every way? Or is it because Keith is jealous of Lance’s perfect complexion and appearance? Knowing Keith, it would be both. 

“Why do you even do skin care?” Keith queried, breaking the silence between them.   
Lance opened one eye to examine Keith. “Because I care about how others perceive me. It’s a new perspective, you should try it.”  
“Why care how I look when there’s no one to impress?”  
He opened his other eye at his remark, gasping. “Keith, there are always people to impress!”  
“Is that why you always keep your skin clean? To impress girls?”  
“No!” Lance exclaimed too quickly, then fixed himself. “Okay, yeah-”  
“My point exactly.”  
“Well, you should care how you look!” He moved his hand from behind his head and used it to motion to Keith’s body. “Have you seen yourself? You could attract girls from all over.”

It was there that Keith looked away from Lance and at the water below. His eyes were scanning the small waves, as if they held the answer to Lance’s question. Lance could see the edge of his jaw tense up with the help of the golden glow of the tub. Keith looked like he was struggling for an answer for a relatively simple question, in Lance’s mind. So what was the cause of Keith’s hesitance? Maybe it was too personal of a question, unless…

No, it couldn’t be that. There was no way that was the answer. Keith wasn’t that way. Was he?

“Hey, I’m sorry if I’m pushing it,” Lance spoke up, waving a hand at Keith. Keith turned his gaze from the water to Lance. His purple eyes flickered with lost regret and a pain that was buried far in his heart. Keith’s lips were slightly parted as his eyes examined Lance. Keith had told him some interesting stuff today, but this was when he swore that Keith was at his most vulnerable. “You don’t have to-”  
“No, it’s fine.” Keith rose his hand from the water to interrupt Lance. “It’s fine. I, uh,” He rubbed the back of his neck, stalling as if it would keep him from giving his reason. “I don’t like girls.”

A lump suddenly formed in Lance’s throat. He tried to swallow it down, but failed. He was right. Keith wasn’t straight in the slightest. A wave of emotions hit Lance at once. On one hand, he was utterly shocked. Keith seemed like that bad boy who took girls on his motorcycle on a magical ride to Makeout Mountain. 

On the other hand, a twinge of pain filled his chest when he saw the obvious discomfort that Keith was struggling with. The way that Keith hugged his body because no one else would. The way his eyes avoided Lance’s with dread that things would never be the same as they were before. Lance had gone through the motions before, way too many times for him to remember. 

“Keith,” Lance said simply in a voice so soft that he didn’t recognize it at first. He swam to the other end of the tub where Keith was and rested against the wall. Keith inched away from Lance, but Lance placed his hand on his shoulder to stop him. “It’s okay if you like guys. You love who you love, and no one should judge you for that.” He chuckled to himself. “I should know.”  
Keith eyed him, a fraction of the tenseness in his body disappearing into the water below. “What’s that supposed to mean?”  
“I just don’t like girls, dude. I’m also a player for the other side.” He offered a comforting smile.  
Keith turned his head in disbelief. His eyes watched him in silent judgement before finally saying, “Are you trying to mock me?”  
“What? No! I’m being honest! Here.” He lifted his left hand out of the water and showed it to Keith. 

On his wrist was what resembled a friendship bracelet. The various strands were made of some kind of rubber, which caused the water from the pool to bead upon its surface. It was woven in a fishtail pattern and was binded by a clear S-shaped hook on both ends. The beginning had black pieces, then moved into pink, purple, and blue. The colors repeated themselves until the end of the band, where another set of black rested. Lance knew the colors like he knew Spanish and he knew Keith knew them too when he gasped. 

They were the colors of the bisexual flag. 

“My little sister, Veronica, made this for me when I came out to my family,” Lance explained as he adjusted the band against his wet skin. “She was one of the few who still loved me for me, probably because she was too young to understand it. She did a little research and used her Rainbow Loom set to make me this.” He smiled to himself. “I wear it every day, to remind me that it’s okay to be proud of who you are. Whether you’re gay or bisexual, you are still you.” 

Lance looked up at Keith with a small smile. When he saw Keith, all he could see was a bright smile that took up almost all of his face. His eyes were much more lively, as if Lance’s little talk brought them back from their gloomy and despaired state. They sparkled with the light of the North Star, like a child on Christmas morning. His shoulders dropped slightly as the tension in his body melted away. 

It was in this moment that Lance felt a small palpitation in his chest, and he realized that Keith was beautiful beyond all measures. 

“Thanks, Lance,” Keith muttered just above the sounds of the splashes and laughter of children nearby.

The moment was perfect, and Lance hoped that he could just stay here with Keith and talk until their fingers get wrinkly.

That is, until Pidge and Hunk decided to join them.

“What’s going on?” Hunk asked as he slid down the ladder and next to Lance.   
“Oh nothing,” Lance quickly answered, dropping his left hand back into the water. “I was just teasing Keith on his mullet.”  
The grin on Keith’s face immediately dropped. “I told you that it’s the way I like it!”  
“That’s just the way Lance is.” Pidge added as she swam to Keith’s side. “His teasing can get him in trouble sometimes. Like when he tried flirting with a girl next to us on Kali River Rapids.”  
Lance gasped. “We are not talking about this.”  
“He told her that she was going to get wet soon, and she hit him with her purse on the big drop.” Keith burst into a wild laughter as Lance’s face grew red. “I meant on the ride! I didn’t mean it like that!”   
“Sorry, buddy,” Hunk piped up as he placed a hand on his back. “It was definitely taken as an innuendo.”  
The Cuban groaned. “Can I go one hour without you two bringing up every single bad attempt I’ve had at flirting?”  
“Nope.” She smirked like the Cheshire Cat. Pidge would always have something on him, whether he knew it or not. “Say, Keith, where are you and your group going tomorrow?”  
“I think Shiro said that we’re going to Epcot.”  
“No way!” Hunk exclaimed. “We’re heading there, too!”  
Lance beamed. “Keith, you should have you and your group join us!”  
“You guys are okay with that?” Keith asked with uncertainty, looking to Hunk and Pidge.   
“Yeah, definitely. A friend of Lance is a friend of ours.” She shot a quick look at Lance and winked. What the hell was that supposed to mean?  
“Alright! Then it’s set! How about we meet the bus stop at 9 tomorrow?” Hunk offered, examining his waterproof watch.  
“Sounds good to me,” Keith answered with a shy smile. “I’ll let Shiro and Allura know.”  
“Sweet!” Pidge pumped her arm in success. “Now, who’s down for some drinks at the bar?”

They all agreed, even Hunk, who drank very light that night. Although he had a little more weight on him, he didn’t want to risk drinking too much. Pidge, on the other hand, drank enough for the both of them, and she somehow managed to walk away perfectly fine. However, Lance and Keith ended up having a drinking contest. Lance was sure that he won, but he passed out before he could declare his victory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Finally another update, now that I'm done with high school!! I'm sure I'll be able to get the next chapter up before I go to college the end of the month! Also, I've been debating on whether or not to edit the story and substitute Adam for Allura, since it's now canon that Shiro is gay and was with Adam prior to the Kerberos mission. If you guys could comment below and give me some feedback, that'd be great!


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